Read aloud in Chrome: Google will soon let you listen to web pages natively with ease

Too lazy to read something online? A read online in Chrome is reportedly being worked on — a feature that’s been on Microsoft Edge for quite some time.

A recent discovery in the insider community has suggested that Google is working to bring a native read aloud feature to Chrome desktop. The feature, which is currently in development, would allow users to have web pages read aloud to them using a variety of voices and languages. 

As spotted by Chrome enthusiast @Leopeva64, the read aloud feature has been spotted in Chrome Canary, the experimental channel of the browser. And it works perfectly, too. Will it be released in a future version of Chrome for the next Stable channel update?

Chrome for desktop will also have the option to "read aloud" articles, the initial implementation of this feature (in the Canary version) is pretty basic but it works, in this link you can see a video with the feature in action:https://t.co/UMAzrWKaWo
.https://t.co/Wha3AzI9gf pic.twitter.com/z8KMvtUsLI

— Leopeva64 (@Leopeva64) August 25, 2023

A few weeks back, it was recently discovered that Google is testing a read aloud feature in Chrome for Android (flag: #read-aloud via Chromestory). This is interesting because features are typically tested on desktop first and then mobile. However, it is still a welcome addition, as it will make Chrome more accessible to users who prefer to listen to content instead of reading it.

The upcoming native read aloud feature in Chrome would be a significant improvement over the current read aloud feature, which requires users to install an extension or use a third-party app. Chromebooks also have a built-in screen reader that can be used to read parts of a page aloud, including specific words. Additionally, Google Assistant can be used to read aloud content from the web.

Google Chrome is available for desktop is available on Windows, macOS, and Linux.