# Descript

> Descript, the transcript-first audio and video editor: Underlord v2, Descript MCP and API, Rooms recording, pricing and how it compares with Premiere.

Source: https://metavert.io/descript  
Published: 2026-10-21  
Updated: 2026-10-21

**Descript** is an audio and video editor that made [transcript-based editing](https://metavert.io/transcript-based-editing) mainstream: a recording is edited by editing its text, and the audio and video follow. Built for podcasts, interviews, tutorials and talking-head video, it combines recording, transcription, cleanup and editing in one app. In 2026 it also became one of the most agent-ready editors: its Underlord co-editor reached version 2 in January, its API opened in April, and by June Descript MCP was listed in Claude's connector directory and ChatGPT's app marketplace.

### Company and Origins

Descript was founded by Andrew Mason, the co-founder of Groupon, who had earlier built the audio-tour app Detour. In September 2019 it raised $15 million from Andreessen Horowitz and Redpoint and acquired Lyrebird, a Montreal voice-synthesis startup, whose technology became Overdub, a feature that let podcasters type new words in their own cloned voice. That early bet on [speech AI](https://metavert.io/speech-voice-ai) set the pattern for the product: the transcript is the interface, and AI handles the audio and video underneath.

### Products as of October 2026

- **Text-based editing.** Deleting a sentence from the transcript deletes it from the video; rearranging paragraphs rearranges the cut. Filler-word and silence removal work the same way.
- **Underlord.** An in-app AI co-editor that takes plain-language requests. Version 2 (January 6, 2026) lets users choose the model that runs it from Claude, Gemini or GPT families.
- **Descript API and MCP.** The API entered public beta on April 16, 2026, and Descript MCP lets outside agents such as Claude and ChatGPT work in Descript projects (see [video editing MCP servers](https://metavert.io/video-editing-mcp)).
- **Rooms.** Remote recording with up to ten participants, with live captions added in 2026.
- **Voice and audio.** Studio Sound cleans up voices on paid plans. Since September 2026 Descript has offered [ElevenLabs](https://metavert.io/elevenlabs) voices, music and sound-effect generation, and in October its AI voice clones moved to ElevenLabs' Eleven v4 model.
- **Hand-off.** Timeline export to [Adobe Premiere](https://metavert.io/adobe-premiere) and [Final Cut Pro](https://metavert.io/final-cut-pro) on Creator and Business plans.

### Price

Descript prices per user and meters usage. On annual billing, Hobbyist costs $16 a month (10 media hours, 400 AI credits), Creator $24 (30 hours, 800 credits, 4K export) and Business $50 (40 hours, 1,500 credits); monthly billing costs $24, $35 and $65. The free plan is limited to one media hour, 720p and a watermark (prices as of October 2026).

### How It Compares

Descript is words-first where traditional editors are picture-first. Premiere and [DaVinci Resolve](https://metavert.io/davinci-resolve) have adopted its central idea, with Premiere's Text panel and [Paper Edit](https://metavert.io/paper-edit) and Resolve's text-based timeline and IntelliScript, but they remain timeline editors with far more finishing depth. Descript is faster for content where the words carry the story, easier for non-editors, and further ahead in letting outside agents work in projects. Many teams use both: the story cut in Descript, then export to Premiere for B-roll, graphics, color and mix. Its agent features make it a reference point for [agentic video editing](https://metavert.io/agentic-video-editing). See [Descript vs Adobe Premiere](https://metavert.io/compare/descript-vs-premiere-pro) and [transcript-based editing vs timeline editing](https://metavert.io/compare/transcript-based-editing-vs-timeline-editing), and for the wider field, [AI video editing](https://metavert.io/ai-video-editing).

## Related Topics

- [Transcript-Based Editing](https://metavert.io/transcript-based-editing) — The editing model Descript popularized
- [Descript vs Adobe Premiere](https://metavert.io/compare/descript-vs-premiere-pro) — Words-first against picture-first editing
- [Transcript-Based Editing vs Timeline Editing](https://metavert.io/compare/transcript-based-editing-vs-timeline-editing) — When each approach wins
- [Video Editing MCP Servers](https://metavert.io/video-editing-mcp) — Editors that AI agents can drive
- [Agentic Video Editing](https://metavert.io/agentic-video-editing) — Agents that operate editors
- [AI Video Editing](https://metavert.io/ai-video-editing) — AI across post-production
- [Speech Recognition (ASR)](https://metavert.io/speech-recognition) — The transcription underneath
- [Paper Edit](https://metavert.io/paper-edit) — Cutting from transcripts

## Further Reading

- [Descript changelog](https://descript.canny.io/changelog) — Underlord v2, the API beta, Descript MCP and Rooms updates
- [Descript pricing](https://www.descript.com/pricing) — Plans, media hours and export by plan
- [Descript snags $15M, acquires Lyrebird](https://techcrunch.com/2019/09/18/descript-audio/) — TechCrunch, September 18, 2019
- [Andrew Mason](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Mason) — Wikipedia; Descript's founder