The Audio Academy Festival 2026: Where community and audio combine

Last year I attended the Radio Academy Festival, and while I was there, the organisation announced it would become the Audio Academy. Returning to the first festival under the new name felt significant. The ambition to bring radio, podcasts, and on-demand together as one converged audio landscape was no longer a promise. It was reflected in the programme, the conversations, and the people in the room.

A fitting start

The day opened with Tony Phillips, founder of Sea Salt and Mango and a much-loved figure in the industry, receiving the Audio Academy Fellowship. Tony’s “Black Voices Matter” session was the most affecting of last year’s festival for me, so seeing him recognised was a genuinely joyful way to begin. It set a warm tone for the day.

Live from the Media Club

I participated in a live recording of the Media Club podcast with Matt Deegan and Martin Bojtos, co-founder of Podmasters, in front of an audience.

The format is a smart one: each week, the Media Club spotlights someone in the media who has been doing standout work, with another guest joining the conversation. It feels particularly valuable in an industry that can sometimes seem exclusionary.

We talked about audio, radio and podcasting, and I shared findings from MIDiA’s recent report, From reach to resonance: Radio’s new role in music discovery. The title captures the central argument: radio’s strength has traditionally been measured in reach, but in an era of almost unlimited streaming choice, its value increasingly lies in how it creates connection and helps listeners discover music they care about. It was a pleasure to take that research from the page into a live discussion.

What does the future of radio sound like?

In a panel exploring what the future of radio might sound like, I shared insights we’ve been tracking at MIDiA. These conversations are particularly useful when data meets the experience of people working in the medium every day, and the questions from the floor reflected a real appetite to understand where radio fits within an increasingly fragmented audio market.

Dolby Atmos: a triumphant return

I can’t write about the festival without mentioning the Dolby Atmos room. We heard from The Rolling Stones’ official podcast Speaking in Tongues  and the quality and clarity of the sound was genuinely striking. We also got a taste of Audible’s new Dracula audiobook, an example of how immersive audio can add a different dimension to storytelling.

The festival closed with a meditation soundscape session: a quieter, more contemplative ending that felt like a fitting demonstration of audio’s ability to create atmosphere, immersion, and emotion.

Unified as an industry

Beyond the sessions, what I’ll remember most is the people. I caught up with industry friends old and new, and the sense of connection was evident throughout the day.

For an industry that spends so much time debating formats, platforms, and business models, it was a useful reminder of what we have in common. The Audio Academy is doing something valuable by creating a space where those different parts of the audio landscape can come together: to share ideas, challenge each other and, importantly, enjoy being part of the same community.