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Castaway

Listen to level-appropriate podcasts with native speakers, follow along with transcripts, and freely look up words with a built-in dictionary


My Chinese learning experience

Hey, this is Jeff. Growing up as an ABC (American-born Chinese), the main way I learned Chinese was by listening to my family and friends around me. As an adult trying to learn Chinese again, I realized that none of the existing methods worked well for me — all of the Chinese learning content out there was too slow, too advanced, or not interesting to me.I made Castaway to mimic an immersive environment by listening to podcasts from native speakers about topics I actually care about, while learning to read through transcripts. It's been really helpful so far, and I hope it can help you too!

Immerse yourself

Talk like a native

Listen to native Chinese speakers speak naturally and learn useful vocabulary that's relevant to you.

Follow along

The easiest way to learn Hanzi

No more "Wait, what did they just say?". See the words you're hearing and follow along with a transcript for each episode.

Learn in context

Learn new words then and there

Don't understand something? No need to switch to a separate dictionary app and manually look it up. Learn new words in the context they're being used.


Stay in-the-know

Sign up for the waitlist

Castaway isn't quite ready for you yet, but I'll be sure to let you know when it is! Just let me know your email below and I'll keep you updated on how things are going.For podcasters: Contact me to learn more about how you can monetize your transcripts, expand your audience, and provide a great learner experience!

Dictionary definitions are provided by CC-CEDICT