Podcasts and webinars have seen a significant rise in popularity over the past half decade. However, last year kind of changed the game, leading these platforms to record remotely. And the quality has followed suit. Buffering videos, unstable internet connection, Daft Punk like sound effects, and more, have significantly hurt the podcast-video scene.

Israeli startup Riverside.fm developed a system for recording high-quality podcasts and videos from a remote setting, and now announces a new funding round from a few major players in the tech and content worlds.

Studio like sound, but remote

Riverside.fm’s system creates a kind of recording console on the user’s browser, allowing the podcast host to simply send guests a link to connect - no installation or third party apps needed. All of the recorded audio and videos are saved locally, releasing dependence on internet connection and files that need to be compressed. At the same time, high-quality files are being uploaded (non-compressed WAV or 4K video) to the cloud, so if the browser crashes, the internet is down, or you encounter a friendly BSoD - the content is saved and undamaged.

Once the podcast has been recorded, the host can edit the content and export the final draft to go live at high-quality. Among the cool features the system provides users to edit content; an autonomous focus tool helps highlight the speaker and customizable branding options put your podcast on the map. The company’s SaaS subscription model charges members based on their actual time of recording.

Riverside.fm was founded in 2019 by brothers, Nadav and Gideon Keyson, who moved to Israel from Amsterdam. Among the company’s customers we find market giants like Disney, Spotify, Verizon Media, Microsoft, and public figures such as former Presidential candidate, Hilary Clinton.

The recent $9.5 million round, led by Reddit founder, Alexis Ohanian’s Seven Seven Six, with participation from sports-tech vlogger, Marques Brownlee, better known as MKBHD, and content creator Casey Neistat. Also participating in the round was Zeev Ventures; Guy Raz, who is considered “one of the most popular podcasters of all time”; Elad Gil, who sold his company Mixer Labs to Twitter; Alexander Klöpping and other strategic investors. Riverside had secured Seed funding less than 6 months ago, and with the most recent round the podcast-tech startup has raised a total of over $12 million to date.