Rebind.ai, a new enhanced e-book company aiming to transform how readers engage with classic literature through an AI-enhanced platform, has been named a Time magazine Invention of the Year for 2024. The platform launched this month with five titles featuring commentary from contemporary literary luminaries.
The first titles on the platform, which all come from the public domain, include James Joyce's Dubliners, with commentary from Booker Prize winner John Banville; F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, with commentary by Peter Catapano; and Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, with commentary form Chloé Cooper Jones. Nonfiction titles, also in the public domain, include and Friedrich Nietzsche's Thus Spoke Zarathustra, with commentary from Clancy Martin, and Henry David Thoreau's Walden, featuring commentary from Rebind cofounder John Kaag.
Each e-book, priced at $29.95 (or $120 for an annual subscription to all titles), is accessible through a web browser and features video introductions filmed on location. The platform incorporates AI-powered discussions drawn from 10-15 hours of pre-recorded expert commentary. Mobile apps are planned for next year.
"We spent a great deal of time trying to address any potential query and all answers are based on the expert commentary," Kaag said, noting that upcoming features include notetaking capabilities and academic citation tools. The company compensates its commentators through advances against royalties, with revenue sharing agreements in place.
The idea behind Rebind started when tech entrepreneur John Dubuque approached Kaag in April 2023 and said he would like to do a one-on-one tutorial about William James's Varieties of Religious Experience. That initial conversation evolved into a larger vision of creating "bespoke AI chatbots" built from extensive recorded commentary by literary experts. Dubuque is providing the financial backing for the project.
Kaag, a professor at the University of Massachusetts Lowell and the author of American Philosophy: A Love Story and other acclaimed works, serves as publisher. Martin, a professor at the University of Missouri in Kansas City and author of ten books, serves as deputy publisher.
By late 2025, Rebind plans to publish expand to 22-24 titles, representing approximately two new titles per month. Upcoming releases include Deepak Chopra on selections of Buddhist texts, Lena Dunham on E.M. Forster's A Room with a View, and religious scholar Elaine Pagels on the Gospels and Gnostic Gospels. Other commentators with forthcoming releases include Margaret Atwood, Roxane Gay, Garth Greenwell, and Marlon James.
Rebind is also exploring partnerships with publishers to license existing commentary for more complex projects requiring multiple commentators. The company attracted 10,000 waitlist subscribers prior to launch, with strong initial sales reported. It is also slated to present at next year’s South by Southwest festival.
"We're not Blinkist or Spark Notes," Kaag emphasized, distinguishing Rebind from existing study guides and book summary services. "We're encouraging people to go a little bit more slowly and mindfully through the book and to really value the interactive component that allows you to explore your experiences. It's really meant to encourage reading and to encourage a certain type of engaged, pencil-in-hand, really deep close reading."
Kaag added: "Most publishing just wants you to buy the book and then they don't care what happens afterwards. We want people to read the classics and use this platform for lifelong learning."
