Threads, Meta’s fast-growing rival to X, is making a strategic play for the podcasting community. The company announced new features designed to attract podcasters and spark more conversations around their shows — part of a broader effort to establish Threads as the primary destination for podcast discussions.
According to Meta, the first wave of updates will give podcast links in the Threads feed a fresh, distinctive look. These links will now feature colorful backgrounds and thumbnail images, making them stand out more prominently and encouraging engagement.
Creators will also get a new section in their profile dedicated to their podcast link. This visually enhanced placement aims to help podcasters promote their shows more effectively and grow their listener base directly from the app.
Building a Podcast Hub
A Meta spokesperson told TechCrunch that more podcast-related features will roll out over the coming year. The updates will focus on improving how creators and listeners connect, as well as providing insights into how conversations about specific shows are performing.
Meta sees an opportunity to unify the fragmented podcast conversation space — which currently spans Reddit, X, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Spotify — under one platform. With over 400 million monthly active users and 150 million daily users, Threads believes tapping into the podcast community could significantly boost its engagement and narrow the gap with X, which reports around 600 million monthly users.
Not a Distribution Platform — Yet
While Threads is targeting podcast discussions, Meta clarified that it does not intend to host or distribute podcasts directly. Instead, it plans to enhance discovery and conversation by developing analytics tools that help creators understand audience sentiment and trends.
Threads also plans to introduce recommendation features that will help users find podcasts aligned with their interests, strengthening the relationship between podcasters and their listeners through social interaction.
Expanding Creator Tools
This move follows a series of creator-focused updates from Threads. In May, Meta allowed users to add up to five external links on their profiles, enabling broader promotion across platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, and blogs. More recently, Threads introduced a feature for creators to attach longer-form text posts, encouraging deeper engagement and storytelling.
With these podcast-focused updates, Threads is betting that conversations — not just content — will be its differentiator in the crowded social media space.
