DUBAI (WAM)

Podeo, the world’s largest podcast distribution platform, announced a $5.4 million funding round to support podcasters in overcoming the discoverability challenge. The Series A funding round was led by Oraseya Capital (the VC arm of the Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority) with participation from Ibtikar Fund, Cedar Mundi Ventures, Samarium, iSME, and returning investor Razor Capital.

Podeo offers an all-in-one platform for podcasters, streamlining everything from content creation and distribution to monetisation. At a time when audio discoverability is an ever-growing challenge, Podeo’s exclusive distribution integrations transcend traditional streaming apps, unlocking unprecedented exposure across radio stations, airlines, ride-hailing services, gaming, and chat apps.

With a thriving community of over 100,000 creators and a global audience of more than 50 million listeners, Podeo is breaking barriers to reach and empowering independent voices to be heard like never before.

500 million podcast listeners

There are over 500 million podcast listeners worldwide today, and the global podcasting market is expected to grow ninefold from $27 billion in 2023 to over $234 billion by 2030.

With listeners completing approximately 80 percent of any given podcast episode, it is unsurprising that worldwide ad spending is projected to reach $4.02 billion in 2024. Amid this explosive growth, discoverability remains the greatest hurdle for podcasters.

Founded by Stefano Fallaha, Anthony Essaye, and Mario Hayek in 2020, Podeo started as a podcast app with exclusive content but quickly evolved into a groundbreaking end-to-end platform. Shifting from a destination-first to a distribution-first model, Podeo is redefining how podcasts are delivered and monetised.