Amazon working on Clubhouse competitor to broadcast live radio shows

Amazon may be working on a competitor for audio chat app Clubhouse. According to an internal presentation, the company is working on a new app called Project Mic. It allows users to create and broadcast live radio shows.

According to The Verge, which has seen the presentation, Amazon wants to “democratize and reinvent radio.” Users can listen to Project Mic radio shows through the app, Audible, Amazon Music, streaming service Twitch, and devices with the Alexa voice assistant. The app would also be optimized for cars. Amazon will initially focus the project on the United States, writes The Verge. It is unknown when the app will be released.

A mock-up image of the Project Mic app shows lists of shows that are live, as well as radio topics that are trending, according to The Verge. The app would mainly focus on music, but according to The Verge, three other topics are also covered: pop culture, comedy and sports. Certain creators are featured within the app, and users can search for shows based on the topic, show name, or music used.

People who create a Project Mic radio show can use Amazon’s music catalog to do so. The company would also partner with celebrities and smaller creators to help release the app. Amazon did not respond to questions from The Verge. Axios already reported in August that the company is working on live audio apps. That medium also stated that Amazon “is in contact” with major record labels to organize live audio events.

Live audio has grown in popularity since the advent of audio chat app Clubhouse. With Project Mic, Amazon would follow several other companies in releasing Clubhouse-like features. Spotify released its Greenroom app earlier this year, which also allows users to broadcast live audio. Facebook recently introduced Live Audio Rooms in the Benelux and Discord and Reddit also come with Clubhouse clones in their apps.