Black Goblin, an Edinburgh-based audio technology startup, is helping sound professionals reclaim time for creativity.
Featured in EIT Culture & Creativity’s 100-to-Watch list and a participant in the Scale Post-Acceleration Programme, the company has developed Thol, an AI-powered tool designed to streamline audio spotting in film and TV production.
Sound is the invisible force behind the emotional power of film and television. It builds atmosphere, signals tension, and anchors audiences in believable worlds – whether through the subtle rustle of leaves or the creak of a door in a spooky house.
Behind this sensory experience lies a highly collaborative and creative discipline. Sound designers, editors and mixers work closely with directors and producers to craft immersive audio landscapes. Their work includes ambient sound creation, Foley recording, and the layering of sound effects, where creative choices support the narrative.
Yet despite its creative core, audio post-production is often dominated by time-intensive manual work. An estimated 30–50% of a project can be spent on repetitive technical tasks, limiting the time available for creative decision-making.
One of the most demanding of these tasks is audio spotting: the process of identifying where sound elements need to be added or enhanced. Often, audio professionals repeatedly watch the same scenes, marking each cue with precision. It’s a labour-intensive step that can take between eight and twenty times the duration of the footage itself. For a feature-length film, that can easily add up to days, even weeks of work.
Automating the Repetitive, Unlocking Creative Time
This challenge is precisely where startup Black Goblin sees an opportunity.
Black Goblin’s approach is rooted in hands-on industry experience. Co-founded in 2018 by CEO Ana Betancourt, the company originally operated as a production studio, delivering sound recording services for film and television. Through this work the team identified audio spotting as a clear bottleneck, where automation could offer real value without compromising creative control.
Rather than replacing decision-making, Thol is designed to support it. The software analyses audiovisual content, interprets context, and identifies potential sound events within a scene. For example, it can distinguish whether a sequence takes place in a café or a forest, and detect actions such as footsteps or rainfall that may require sound design input.
As AI tools have entered the industry, the team also observed scepticism—particularly around technologies that generate synthetic sound and risk undermining authenticity. In contrast, Black Goblin focused on augmenting existing workflows rather than replacing them.
By automating the initial identification and labelling of sound elements, Thol reduces the need for manual tagging and repeated scene review. Sound professionals remain fully in control, reviewing and refining the output—but with significantly less repetitive work, they can focus more on the creative aspects of a project.
Scaling With EIT Culture & Creativity Support
Building on this momentum, Black Goblin joined the EIT Culture & Creativity Scale Post-Acceleration Programme in 2025. The programme played a key role in helping the company transition from research and development to a more commercially focused strategy.
The post-accelerator was crucial in helping us to map our vision into tangible milestones. One of the things we did was to launch the private beta version of our product.
Ana Betancourt, CEO of Black Goblin
That transition has already shown tangible results. In early 2026, Black Goblin made its beta version public, which led to a 175% increase in usage within its first few weeks. Over the past six months, more than 200 professional projects have used the pilot platform.
Expanding horizons in a growing market
Now a team of five, Black Goblin is positioning itself within a rapidly expanding audiovisual landscape. The European film and television sector alone represents a market worth €142 billion in 2024, with growth driven by online subscriptions, reflecting both strong cultural output and increasing global demand.
Currently, users can test the tool with limited footage, with subscription-based versions – featuring expanded functionality – expected later in 2026. While the company’s immediate focus remains on film and TV production, it is already looking towards adjacent sectors. Non-linear media – including gaming, as well as augmented and virtual reality – offer new opportunities where complex sound design is equally critical.
At the same time, Black Goblin is embedding sustainability into its development strategy. Through participation in the CoSTAR Evolve programme, the company is exploring ways to reduce the environmental footprint of its technology, which currently relies on cloud-based infrastructure.
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