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News · head to head

Artifact vs Steno

A

Artifact

News

AI-powered personalized news discovery

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Steno logo

Steno

News

AI transcription and analysis for news and media

From
$500/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Artifact has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Artifact wound down in early April 2024. Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger closed it, saying the market opportunity was not large enough to keep investing; Steno no free tier available; entry point at $500/month
  • They diverge on capability: Artifact covers AI recommendations, Steno covers AI transcription.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Artifact and Steno actually diverge.

Attributes where Artifact and Steno differ
AttributeArtifactSteno
Starting priceFree$500/month
Pricing modelfreesubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsIos, AndroidWeb
Founded20222020

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (News).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Artifact

  • AI recommendations
  • Article summaries
  • Clickbait detection
  • Social sharing
  • Topic following
  • Social sharing
  • Ios support
  • Android support

Only in Steno

  • AI transcription
  • Broadcast search
  • Real-time monitoring
  • Clip creation
  • Media analysis
  • Slack
  • Email
  • API

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Artifact

  • News consumptionnot Steno
  • Content discoverynot Steno
  • Staying informednot Steno

Steno

  • AI-powered content creation platformnot Artifact
  • Voice and text content generationnot Artifact
  • Multi-channel content distributionnot Artifact
  • Programmatic content syndicationnot Artifact

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Artifact

  • Wound down in early April 2024. Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger closed it, saying the market opportunity was not large enough to keep investing
  • Yahoo acquired the personalisation technology and folded it into Yahoo News, so the app itself is not coming back
  • The founders stayed only in an advisory capacity through the transition

Steno

  • No free tier available; entry point at $500/month
  • Enterprise plan pricing not published; requires custom quote
  • Premium add-ons (iOS/Android app, Pro Voice) pricing not disclosed

Pricing, plan by plan

Artifact

Free
  • FreeFree
    • AI-powered recommendations
    • Article summaries
    • Social features

Steno

$500/month
  • Starter$500/month
    • 16,500 credits per month
    • 1 Twin
    • Web app deployment
  • Growth$1000/month
    • 40,000 credits per month
    • 2 Twins
    • Web app deployment
  • Scale$2000/month
    • 100,000 credits per month
    • 3 Twins
    • Web app deployment
  • Enterprise$null/month
    • 200,000+ credits per month
    • 5 Twins
    • Web app deployment

Which should you pick?

Choose Artifact if

  • You need ai recommendations.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Ios, Android.
  • You also want article summaries.
Artifact review

Choose Steno if

  • You need ai transcription.
  • You also want broadcast search.
Steno review

Questions people ask

Is Artifact or Steno better?
Neither clearly leads. Artifact starts at Free and Steno at $500/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Artifact or Steno?
Artifact has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Artifact and $500/month for Steno.
Does Artifact or Steno run on more platforms?
Artifact runs on Ios, Android. Steno runs on Web.
Can I use Artifact for free?
Yes. Artifact has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Steno starts at $500/month.
What is Artifact best used for?
Artifact is most often used for news consumption, content discovery, staying informed. Of those, news consumption and content discovery are not what Steno is typically brought in for.
What can Artifact do that Steno cannot?
Artifact covers AI recommendations, Article summaries, Clickbait detection, Social sharing. Steno covers AI transcription, Broadcast search, Real-time monitoring, Clip creation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Steno: What is the minimum cost to start using Steno?

The Starter plan is $500/month with 16,500 monthly credits. Steno does not offer a free tier, and monthly billing options include annual subscriptions with 10-15% savings.

Source
Steno: What are Steno credits and how many do I get?

Credits are the universal currency used for content processing, training, and user interactions across text, voice, and video. Starter includes 16,500/month, Growth 40,000/month, Scale 100,000/month, and Enterprise 200,000+/month.

Source
Steno: What is a Twin in Steno's pricing?

Twins are included in Steno plans at different quantities: Starter includes 1 Twin, Growth 2, Scale 3, and Enterprise 5. Specific features of Twins are not detailed on the pricing page.

Source
Steno: What are Steno's platform fees?

Steno charges monetization platform fees that decrease with plan tier: Starter at 9%, Growth at 8%, Scale at 7%, and Enterprise at 6%.

Source
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