Why we made Vikéo

Wikipedia is one of the best things people have ever built together: millions of articles, written and checked by volunteers, free to anyone who wants them. But it is built to be read, and so much of life happens when reading isn't possible: on the commute, at the gym, over the stove, in the minutes before sleep. We made Vikéo so knowledge can come along for those moments too. Articles become episodes you can listen to, told by hosts in a style that suits you, and now and then songs you'll still be humming tomorrow.

The Wikimedia movement describes its vision as a world in which “every single human being can freely share in the sum of all knowledge.” We think every single human being includes the people text alone doesn't reach: people who learn best by ear, people who can't look at a screen, people still learning to read or still learning the language, and people whose hands and eyes are busy. Vikéo is our attempt to carry the same knowledge into more formats, spoken, sung and whatever comes next, so more of it reaches more people.

We build on the work of Wikipedia's editors, and we owe that work care. Every episode and song starts from an article and credits it, so anyone can go to the original, check it and improve it, and the articles stay free under the licence they were written under. Vikéo is independent, but we share the belief behind Wikipedia: knowledge is better when it's free, and better still when it reaches everyone.