I built a platform that syncs audio with reading - Here's how

Today I'm launching Immerziva, a platform that lets authors add synchronized audio to their stories.

The Concept

Imagine reading a story and hearing:

• Rain sounds during a storm scene
• Tense music as danger approaches
• Footsteps when a character walks

All automatically synced with your reading pace.

The Audio Sync Challenge

The trickiest part was syncing audio with reading speed. Here's the approach:

1. Authors place "audio cues" at specific points in the text
2. We track the reader's scroll position and calculate reading speed
3. When a cue enters the viewport, we start a timer based on estimated reading time
4. Audio triggers when the reader should reach that point

// Simplified concept
const triggerAudio = (cue, readingSpeed) => {
  const wordsUntilCue = countWords(currentPosition, cue.position);
  const timeUntilCue = wordsUntilCue / readingSpeed * 60 * 1000;

  setTimeout(() => {
    playAudio(cue.audioId);
  }, timeUntilCue);
};

Features

For Readers:

• Immersive reading experience
• Works on any device (PWA)
• Reading analytics
• Personal library

For Authors:

• Free publishing
• Visual audio editor
• Real-time engagement stats
• Reader community

Try It

🔗 immerziva.com

We shared the experiment on Product Hunt today to get broader feedback. If anyone wants to check it out or leave a comment there, here’s the link: Product Hunt

Would love technical feedback, especially on the audio sync approach!