# Plato Podcast Player — Skip podcast ads

> Skip podcast ads (iPhone/iPad app by Jonathan Mercer.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/plato-podcast-player/id1671043710 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Jonathan Mercer](https://appshunter.io/developer/1139082295)
- Category: News, Utilities
- Price: Free
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 17.0 · 5 MB
- Languages: English
- Released: 2023-10-31
- Data updated: 2026-05-17
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/plato-podcast-player/id1671043710/reviews.md

## What is Plato Podcast Player?

Discover the future of uninterrupted podcast listening with Plato Podcast Player, the pioneering app that elevates your listening experience by smartly detecting repetitive ads. Designed exclusively for the modern iPhone user, Plato is the first of its kind, leveraging advanced AI to ensure your podcast experience is about what you love – the content.


Ad Detection Intelligence: Utilizing cutting-edge AI/ML technology, Plato detects and allows you to effortlessly skip past repeating ads in your favorite podcasts. The smart algorithm learns and improves over time, offering you a more seamless listening journey.

First-time Freshness: Plato respects the uniqueness of every podcast episode. It allows first-time ads to play, ensuring you don't miss out on potential new content or one-time special offers.

Non-Intrusive Host Talks: Enjoy the organic flow of host conversations without disruption. Plato is tailored to bypass only the recurring ads, preserving the authenticity of ad-libbed host segments.


Key Features:
- Innovative Ad-Skipping Technology: The first and only app capable of smart ad detection in the podcast realm.
- User-Centric Design: A sophisticated, intuitive interface crafted for the most discerning podcast aficionados.
- Universal Podcast Access: Bring your favorite podcasts into Plato, and let the AI do the rest.
- No Hidden Costs: Completely free, with full access to all features without any in-app purchases.

Designed Exclusively for:
iPhone X and above
iOS 17 and newer

Embrace the uninterrupted storytelling with Plato Podcast Player – where your podcasts play, and only the ads stay away.


## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 1.1.240109 — 2024-01-16

Thank you all for your feedback! See changes below.

Night Mode
- Show warnings when toggling Night Mode settings so that it will only run when there is something to run
- Re-did the "dark" screen so you can tell what's happening
- See what shows failed to refresh
- UI for those that can't process episodes because of their Siri/Dictation settings

Shows
- Each Show now has a more visible option to auto-add new episodes to the top of queue
- Setting to prevent show from refreshing (think of this as archiving a show)


Settings
- Added button to delete all episode audio that's not in queue so save space

### 1.1.240102 — 2024-01-09

Show status of podcasts when refreshed. This lets you know when a podcast was refreshed and if there were issues with it.

### 1.1.231221 — 2024-01-03

Fix crash issues and handles an edge case when a podcast makes large changes to all their episodes at once.

### 1.1.231031 — 2023-11-07

Hi everyone, this update brings a new algorithm to find repeat content. Please send feedback on the new experience so I can tune it further.

REPEAT: 
- Complete rehaul of repeat finding algorithm. Why? The old algorithm didn't scale well when you have thousands of episodes.
- Impoved UI for seeing repeat content.
- Technically, the new algorithm takes a lot more memory, so it will likely for Podcasts that are 2+ hours long per episode AND where you have hundreds processed. Future versions should fix this.
- Settings for tuning the repeat algorithm

NIGHT:
- Upgrades old repeat data to the new algorithm. It should take 10s per episode in your queue/history. Personally it took two Night Modes to process everything.
- When you manually cancel Night Mode, all pending downloads are also cancelled

AUDIO:
- Reduced bugs playing bugs. When you press play, the audio should now play more often. Please send feedback when you tap play and nothing starts playing.
- Play button now animates
- Disabled interaction with bottom bar if nothing is playing

INTRO:
- There is now an intro screen to explain the app.


Thanks!!!

### 1.0 — 2023-10-31

No release notes.

## Apps similar to Plato Podcast Player

| App | Rating | Price | Category |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Podcast Player - Auditory](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/podcast-player-auditory/id1554984316) | 5.0 (8) | Free | News |
| [Lysten: Podcast Player](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/lysten-podcast-player/id1579212581) | 4.7 (9) | Free | News |
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| [Kasey Podcast](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/kasey-podcast/id6444370197) | 5.0 (5) | Free | News |
| [Arvocast: Podcast Player](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/arvocast-podcast-player/id1521815885) | 3.0 (1) | Free | News |

## More apps by Jonathan Mercer

- [Higher - Map Explorer](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/higher-map-explorer/id1484559419)
- [CRL8 – Correlate daily habits](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/crl8-correlate-daily-habits/id1584727849)
- [Sharper - Decision Diary](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sharper-decision-diary/id6471383280)
- [Nag - Relentless Reminders](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nag-relentless-reminders/id6472675266)
- [Vidnotation](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/vidnotation/id6532588668)

All apps by Jonathan Mercer: https://appshunter.io/developer/1139082295

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-05-17.*