Lumikai leads Vobble’s $1M seed round to build a new audio-first interactive media platform for children
We are thrilled to announce our investment in Vobble, a new audio-first interactive media platform for children that re-imagines playtime for kids.
Screen-time usage for kids in today’s generation is starting at the toddler stage. This generation of kids has learned to swipe first before they learn to type. As per research by the PEW Research Center, about 60% of parents say that their smartphone-using child begins to engage with the phone before the age of 5.
The pandemic also fueled the rapid rise in screen time among kids globally, as a vast majority of them were either engaged in full remote learning or hybrid learning. According to a study published by JAMA Pediatrics, screen time during the pandemic grew 52% globally for kids aged between 3 and 18.
Even as COVID-19 restrictions were lifted, research states that elevated levels of screentime persisted. Of all the cohorts in kids age, primary school children, aged between 5 to 10 have seen the highest growth in screen time usage.
When a child has excessive screen exposure, he/she is challenged to process the information they are seeing on-screen, as it is meant for the more developed brains of older children and adults. This processing at such an early age affects sensory pathways of the brain, which then creates a deficit of those resources later in childhood. Research has shown evidence of an association between screen time and lower psychological well-being among children and adolescents.
The increase in screen time for kids has been a major pain point for today’s millennial parents. With both parents often at work, monitoring screen time becomes a challenge. Neha, and Sowmya, both experienced this firsthand as parents to primary school-going kids. They set out on a mission to find alternative avenues to reimagine playtime for their kids.
Through their initial tests, they found the following:
- Kids enjoy immersive audio content with background music, sound effects, and dialogues. Narrative-based content with theatrics appeals to kids, making them curious and engaged at the same time.
- Moreover, they found that kids related to other kids narrating. Most audio content on other platforms offer content narrated by adult voice artists, often leading to a disconnect. When kids hear voices similar to themselves, they are likely to be more engaged. Vobble ensures a good mix of their content is narrated by kids.
- The other observation was that listening was therapeutic for kids, making them calmer, improving their vocabulary, and comprehension.
Vobble was born out of this mission.
Vobble is building a multi-sensory audio-first interactive entertainment platform for kids aged 4–12, and leverages original stories, podcasts, news, and music. Apart from original stories, the founders have been agile in onboarding partnerships with renowned publishers like Hasbro, HarperCollins, Scholastic, Rebel Girls, Tulika, and Amar Chitra Katha. From informative news and quiz-based podcasts to habit-forming songs, Vobble has prioritized engaging, age-appropriate content delivered on a safe, child-centric platform. Currently, Vobble offers starter kits for kids that comprises of audio content subscription, stimulating workbooks, and a kid-safe headphone to offer a multi-sensory experience to kids.
Globally, the audiobook market is expected to reach $35.04Bn by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 26.3%. Of this market, it is anticipated that the kids’ audiobook segment will experience the fastest expansion with a CAGR of 28.9% from 2023–30.
Audio platforms in India have seen a meteoric rise not only in content consumption but also in monetization for the same. Spotify India has seen a 10x-fold increase in the number of subscriptions since 2019, with podcasts being one of the fastest-growing categories.
Moreover, homegrown audio series platforms such as Pocket FM have exceeded $150Mn in ARR worldwide (with 2/3rds of its revenue coming from the overseas market), and Kuku FM has crossed 2.5 million paid subscribers.
While the above-mentioned audio platforms exist, they are highly focused on older audiences, with a limited content library for children. These platforms also require heavy monitoring by parents to ensure the content consumed is appropriate for children. Vobble is looking to tap into this white space, by building an autonomous, multi-sensory media platform for kids.
Audio content consumption is witnessing growing adoption by kids. The current TAM is expandable as kids start adapting to audio content in India and globally. Yoto and Tonies, are two such players in the kids’ audio market. Yoto raised its Series A of $17Mn in 2021, with over 150k units sold from 2015 till 2021, and 4Bn minutes listened on their device as of 2022. Tonies is publicly listed and clocked $208Mn in revenue in the first 9 months of 2023, having grown 38.9% YoY. The company has sold over 5.7Mn Tonieboxes, showcasing the growing demand in the audio content space. However, both of these plays are restricted by their hardware first approach. Vobble has differentiated in this space with a content first approach by providing an immersive audio experience to kids.
Vobble’s impact is already evident, with kids using the product on road-trips, while dining out, waiting at the airport, etc. Vobble is activating learning, imagination and curiosity in children without the need for screens. Early traction has observed kids spend 35 minutes on weekdays and 45 minutes over the weekends. Typical usage is during bedtime or post-school. For some kids, Vobble is slowly replacing their bedtime reading ritual.
Vobble’s mission is to become a global media powerhouse in kids’ content. The key levers that Vobble is building on are as follows:
1. Building an audio first company: Vobble is building an audio first content company that aims to enter a child’s universe of daily interactions. From tuning into content during commute, to keeping the child engaged during a meal, to bed time stories and more, Vobble is already re-defining content consumption habits for kids. The team believes that it is imperative to curate content in a way that kids feel connected to it at every point of usage. For example — Vobble has created content around sleep time called “Bed Time Bliss”. This curation includes calming stories that help children unwind and drift off into peaceful sleep.
2. AI-led, multi-sensory product experiences: The company is leveraging AI in their workflows to ship content faster. Using AI has helped the company build a rich content library, and will further help the company produce content for a diverse audience. The company also offers a program for kids to lend their voices to Vobble. Here, AI helps build a strong repository to train assets on, to further create new assets. In addition, Vobble is experimenting with multi-sensory experiences to engage children via decibel-controlled headphones and puzzles/workbooks, with a further roadmap to explore autonomous devices.
3. Leveraging partnerships: The company has partnered with marquee global and domestic IPs to deliver relatable and immersive content experiences for kids. Further, the company is in conversation with several physical IPs for kids from toys, to apparel, games and beyond to enter into strategic partnerships that will offer Vobble’s audio, building a seamless TOFU.
The founders of Vobble, both Neha Sharma and Sowmya Jagannath have extensive experience as marketers and product specialists. Neha, Vobble’s Co-Founder & CEO, brings two decades of global expertise, steering multiple brand categories as the Global Director at EssilorLuxottica. Her diverse leadership journey spans Unilever, DuPont, and PepsiCo, underscoring her experience in working with consumer-first brands. Meanwhile, Sowmya, Vobble’s co-founder & CPO, is a neuroscience graduate, with a specialized master’s in Human Centered Design. Sowmya has worked with multiple startups as an operations lead on their 0 to 1 journey and is also a published children’s book author. Together, the founders’ unique blend of education and professional experiences have played a pivotal role in shaping Vobble’s creative and innovative pursuit.
The funds will enable Vobble to expand its user base while enabling them to find the right product-market fit and expand to new markets. The funds will also be used in product development and in further enhancing Vobble’s AI capabilities.
We are excited to support Vobble’s innovative approach towards a multi-sensory interactive entertainment platform focused on audio-based learning and entertainment. Aware parents are increasingly valuing bespoke solutions for their children with emergent trends towards curated, premium and specialised offerings. With key partnerships unlocked, a unique content aesthetic, multi-sensory experiences, distribution orientation, emerging brand equity and product first thinking, we are glad to support Neha and Sowmya in their vision to craft Vobble as a new-age media platform for children.
For parents eager to introduce their children to Vobble’s audio immersive adventure, Vobble starter packs are available with 3-month or 6-month subscriptions, including kid-safe headphones and stimulating activity books. In case you would like to experience the content first, the digital-only subscription plans start at INR 199/month, providing affordable access to Vobble’s enriching content.
