Buzzsprout Weekly
A weekly roundup of podcast industry news and updates from the Buzzsprout team! Each episode aims at making podcasters successful with tips, tech reviews, upcoming events, and links to content aimed at making new and seasoned podcasters successful.
Buzzsprout Weekly
iOS 26.2 Is a Big Deal for Podcasters
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Hey, Podcasters!
For years, adding chapters to podcast episodes felt like extra credit. It was great if you had the time, but most of us didn’t.
Now, with iOS 26.2, Apple Podcasts is taking care of it for you!
The next update will automatically generate chapters for every episode, even if you don’t create them yourself.
That means listeners can skip to key moments of your episode and engage with your content more easily than ever before.
Here’s what’s new and how to make the most of it:
1. Auto-Generated Chapters
Apple will detect timestamps or topic breaks and turn them into chapters automatically.
If you have already added chapters to your episodes, those will still appear exactly as you designed them, just with a refreshed look inside Apple Podcasts!
If you prefer to handle it yourself, you can opt out of automatic chapters anytime in Apple Podcasts Connect.
2. Timed Links
This is one of the most exciting changes: you can now include clickable links tied to specific moments in your episode.
Mention another show, an Apple Book, or a series on Apple TV? You can link directly to it, right from the Now Playing screen, so listeners can explore exactly what you’re talking about.
3. A Better Podcast Connect Dashboard
Apple has also refreshed Podcast Connect, so you can now see your chapters, timed links, and transcripts all in one place.
It’s a small update, but a really helpful one! You’ll be able to preview exactly what your audience will see in Apple Podcasts before your episode goes live.
4. Getting Ready with Buzzsprout
If you want to take advantage of all these new features, Buzzsprout can help!
You can:
- Add and edit chapters directly in Buzzsprout
- Include custom artwork and links for each chapter
- Drag and adjust timestamps right on the audio timeline
- Or let Cohost AI create chapters for you automatically
Buzzsprout also embeds chapters into your MP3 file, so everything displays perfectly in Apple Podcasts and other directories. If you want to learn more about these changes, check out our latest video on iOS 26.2!
So before iOS 26.2 officially rolls out, take a few minutes to check your episodes, review your timestamps, or experiment with adding chapters in Buzzsprout. You’ll be ready the moment these new features go live!
Have a question for Megan? Send a text!
That's all for this week! Thanks for listening & keep podcasting!
Hey podcasters, I'm Megan, and this is Buzzsprout Weekly. For years, adding chapter markers to podcast episodes felt like extra credit. It was great if you had the time, but to be honest, most of us didn't. Now, with iOS 26.2, Apple Podcasts is going to take care of it for you. The next update will automatically generate chapters for every episode, even if you don't create them yourself. That means listeners can skip to key moments of your episode and engage with your content more easily than ever before. Here's what's new and how to make the most of it. Up first, auto-generated chapters. Apple will detect timestamps or topic breaks and turn them into chapters automatically. If you have already added chapters to your episodes, those will still appear exactly as you designed them, just with a refresh look inside Apple Podcasts. If you prefer to handle it yourself, you can opt out of automatic chapters anytime in Apple Podcasts Connect. Next, timed links. This is one of the most exciting changes. You can now include clickable links tied to specific moments in your episode. If you mention another show, an Apple book, or a series on Apple TV, you can link to that directly, right from the now playing screen, so listeners can explore exactly what you're talking about. Up next, chapters for subscriber-only episodes. If you share bonus or paid content, those episodes are getting a boost too. Chapters will now also appear for subscriber-only audio, giving those listeners the same smooth, navigable experience as your public feed. We're also getting updates to Podcast Connect. Apple has also added a refreshed Podcast Connect so you can see your chapters, timed links, and transcripts all in one place. It's a small update, but this is gonna be a really helpful one. You'll be able to preview exactly what your audience will see in Apple Podcasts before your episode goes live. If you want to take advantage of all these new features, Buzzsprout can help. In your Buzzsprout account, you can add and edit chapters directly, include custom artwork and links for each chapter, drag and adjust timestamps right on your audio timeline, or you can just let co-host AI create the chapters for you automatically. Buzzsprout also embeds chapters into your MP3 files, so everything displays perfectly in Apple Podcasts and in other directories. If you want to learn more about these changes, check out our latest video on iOS 26.2. We'll link to that in our show notes. Alright, so before iOS 26.2 officially rolls out, take a few minutes to check your episodes, review your timestamps, or experiment with adding chapters in BusRoute. You'll be ready the moment these new episodes go live. I can't wait to see what you create. Until next week, keep podcasting.
