Every podcaster has been there. You’re in the middle of a killer interview, the conversation is flowing, and then… poof. Your mind goes completely blank. Or maybe you're riffing on a news story and suddenly think, “Wait, am I remembering that statistic correctly?” You’re live, you’re recording, and you can’t just stop to Google something without killing the entire vibe.
It’s the silent panic of the content creator. We’ve all felt it.
For years, the solution has just been… more prep. Hours of it. Meticulous show notes, dozens of open browser tabs, a prayer that you remember everything. But what if there was a better way? I’ve been hearing whispers in the industry about AI “copilots” for a while now, and honestly, I was skeptical. Another tech solution looking for a problem? But then I stumbled upon a tool called Relevant, and I’ve gotta say, my curiosity got the best of me.
So, What Exactly Is Relevant?
Imagine you have a research assistant. An incredibly fast one. One that’s listening to every word you say during your recording session. As you’re talking about the latest trends in electric vehicles, this assistant is silently sliding relevant YouTube videos, breaking news articles, and fiery Reddit threads onto a screen in front of you. That’s Relevant in a nutshell.
It’s not a scriptwriter or a robot host. It’s an AI-powered dashboard that acts as your conversational safety net. It connects to your audio and serves up real-time context, turning a potential monologue into a dynamic, informed discussion. It’s less of a teleprompter and more of a… smart-prompter? It gives you ideas, not just words.
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The Features That Actually Matter to a Podcaster
A features list is just a features list until you figure out how it actually fits into your workflow. So let’s break down what Relevant offers from the perspective of someone who’s actually behind the mic.
Real-Time Content Suggestions: Your Antidote for Stale Topics
This is the main event. The core promise. As you speak, the dashboard populates with content related to your conversation. I see this being a total game-changer for interview-based shows. Your guest mentions a niche project they worked on five years ago? Bam. Relevant might pull up a news piece about it, giving you an immediate, intelligent follow-up question. It keeps the conversation from hitting a dead end. For solo hosts, it’s a great way to add depth and fact-check on the fly without breaking your flow. A real lifesaver.
Topic Detection and Getting to the Good Stuff
This one is more of a post-production superstar. The image shows the tool identifying keywords like “Ukrainian” and “Stefon Bandera” from a conversation. Relevant tags your episode with these detected topics. Why is this cool? Because later on, you can filter your entire back catalog by these topics. Imagine wanting to create a compilation episode about a specific theme—you could find every relevant segment in minutes instead of hours. This is also brilliant for creating detailed show notes and audiograms for social media promotion. No more scrubbing through a two-hour recording to find that one golden minute.
Automatic Transcription: The Unsung Hero (for Pro Users)
Ah, transcription. The bane of every podcster's existence. It's tedious, it can be expensive, and it's absolutely necessary for accessibility and SEO. Relevant offers automatic transcription, but—and this is a big but—it’s a Pro feature. When you’re on the Pro plan, your episodes are automatically transcribed and saved. The transcript is even tagged with the speakers, as you can see in the example:
Cheered with the standing ovation is because they said that he found a way for his base to be able to like the Ukrainian side. All you to do is do a little bit of math to realize the guys 98 years old...
Having this done automatically as you record, rather than sending it to a third-party service like Rev or Otter.ai later, is a huge workflow improvement. It's one less step to worry about.
Let's Talk Money: The Pricing Breakdown
Okay, this is where the rubber meets the road. A tool can have all the bells and whistles in the world, but if the price isn’t right, it’s a non-starter. Relevant has two tiers, and they cater to very different types of creators.
The "Relevant Basic" Plan: A Good Starting Point?
This is the pay-as-you-go option. For $1 per minute, you get the core real-time content suggestions. It’s billed monthly based on your usage. My take? This is a great way to dip your toes in the water. If you run a very short podcast or only want to use it for specific, high-value interviews, this could work. But you have to be careful. The fine print mentions that usage is calculated from when you hit “start” to when you hit “stop” and is rounded up to the nearest minute. That means a 61-second recording costs you $2, not $1.01. That can add up faster than you think, so watch that clock!
The "Relevant Pro" Plan: For the Serious Creator
Here’s the all-inclusive option. For $119.99 per month, you get a flat fee for everything. All the content suggestions, plus dashboard customization, topic filtering, and the all-important automatic transcription. Let's do some quick math. If you're recording more than 120 minutes (or 2 hours) a month, this plan is already cheaper than the Basic plan. For anyone running a weekly show or multiple podcasts, the Pro plan is almost certainly the more economical choice. Plus, the mental freedom of not having to watch a per-minute meter ticking away is a feature in itself.
My Honest Take: The Good, The Bad, and The... Pricey?
So, where do I land on Relevant? I'm genuinely intrigued. The idea of real-time conversational support is powerful. The topic detection for post-production is a massive time-saver. It feels like a tool built by people who actually understand the pain points of podcasting.
On the flip side, gating transcription behind the pretty steep Pro plan is a classic SaaS move, but it still stings a little. And that per-minute pricing on the Basic plan feels like it could be a trap for new podcasters who don't realize how quickly recording time can accumulate. It's a premium tool with a premium price tag, for sure.
Who Is This Tool Really For?
I don’t think Relevant is for everyone. If you’re a hobbyist who records a 20-minute show once a month, the pricing structure is probably not going to work for you. But for a certain kind of creator, I think it could be indispensable.
- Professional Podcasters & Studios: If your podcast is part of your business, the Pro plan's cost can likely be justified by the time saved on research and transcription alone.
- Interviewers & Journalists: This is the sweet spot. The ability to pull up context mid-conversation is invaluable for asking smarter questions and impressing your guests.
- News & Current Events Shows: For shows that need to be timely and accurate, having instant access to sources without fumbling with browser tabs is a professional look.
Frequently Asked Questions About Relevant
Does Relevant work with any podcasting software?
Relevant works by listening to your system's audio input. So, it should be compatible with most recording setups, whether you're using Audacity, Adobe Audition, Riverside.fm, or recording directly into a Zoom call. It functions as a separate dashboard, not a plugin.
How accurate is the automatic transcription?
Like most AI-driven transcription, it's not going to be 100% perfect, especially with complex names or heavy accents. However, for creating blog post drafts, finding specific quotes, or providing a searchable archive, it's generally more than accurate enough and a huge time-saver compared to transcribing from scratch.
Can I customize the sources for content suggestions?
The images show that Pro users have access to additional content feeds and dashboard customization. While the base sources are YouTube, Reddit, and the news, the Pro plan allows you to tailor this feed more specifically to your needs, focusing on up to three selections for your custom dashboard.
Is the $1/minute pricing on the Basic plan worth it?
It depends entirely on your usage. For a short, one-off recording or to simply test the platform, it can be. But for any regular podcasting schedule, the cost will likely exceed the Pro plan's flat fee very quickly. I'd advise anyone considering it to track their average monthly recording time first.
How does the 'topic filtering' actually help me?
It streamlines your post-production. Instead of listening back to an entire episode to find where you discussed a certain subject, you can use the topic tags to jump directly to those moments. This is fantastic for pulling clips for social media, writing targeted show notes, or even creating 'best of' compilations.
Final Thoughts
Relevant is a fascinating glimpse into the future of content creation. It's not here to replace the host or the hard work of preparing for a show. Instead, it’s a powerful assistant, a tool designed to augment your creativity and expertise, not supplant it. It smooths over the rough patches of live conversation and adds a layer of professionalism and depth that's often hard to achieve on the fly.
While the pricing might put it out of reach for the casual hobbyist, for serious podcasters looking to elevate their content and streamline their workflow, Relevant is absolutely worth a long, hard look. It might just be your new secret weapon.
