Podcasting is evolving, and industry leaders gathered at the recent Hot Pod Summit to discuss the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.

Ira Glass of This American Life shared his experience with the iOS 17 update—because even Ira Glass noticed the iOS 17 update—which caused a significant drop in downloads most of us. The impact has been felt by podcasters across the board, forcing them to reevaluate their audience sizes and potentially disrupting advertising partnerships. However, experts at the summit emphasized that niche audiences can still be valuable to advertisers, even if they have smaller listener numbers.

Pete and Andy also discussed the rise of podcast partnerships and creator-owned networks, which provide support and exposure for independent podcasters while allowing them to maintain creative control. Despite the challenges, many in the industry remain optimistic about the future of podcasting, with a growing listener base and plenty of room for growth.