What becomes audio
The service extracts readable text from the email body and speaks the subject, that text, and a short link-expiry notice. For a forward, it aims to use the forwarded message rather than a note you add above it. For an ordinary reply, it skips older quoted messages. Attachments are not read.
The body limit is 2,000 words. Longer messages receive a rejection reply asking you to shorten and resend them. A message without readable body text also cannot be converted.
Practical example
If a colleague sends an agenda as an attachment with only “See attached” in the body, forwarding that email will not narrate the agenda. Put text you want read into the message body instead.
What the listening page shows
A successful conversion returns a private link to an MP3 and a read-along view. The highlighted transcript follows the recording approximately; it is not word-accurate timing. The listener can change playback speed and skip 15 seconds backward or forward.
The reply also includes a separate management page and pass for the sender. The management page reports playback sessions that began, not unique listeners or completed listens. See the expiry and control rules for what each link holder can do.
Which services process the message
In the public deployment, Resend receives the email and sends the reply. Google Cloud Text-to-Speech creates the audio. The audio and transcript are stored in a private Google Cloud Storage bucket, while Firestore tracks the link state. Play My Mail’s cloud service handles the conversion and serves valid listening requests.
These providers need the relevant message data to deliver the feature. Avoid sending information you are not comfortable processing through them. Do not treat the listening link as a login-protected page: anyone who has the URL can use it while valid.
What happens at expiry or deletion
The listening page and audio stop being available as soon as the stored deadline is reached or a valid holder deletes the link. The service removes expired audio and transcript objects through a separate cleanup job; object removal may occur after access has ended. The link normally starts with a 24-hour lifetime from the reply being sent, and playback completion can start a 60-second countdown.
A sender should keep the management pass private. A recipient should avoid forwarding the listening URL further. Neither the URL nor the pass belongs in a public article, screenshot, or support message.
Try a non-sensitive message first
A fictional or routine email is a good first test. Send it to hey@playmymail.com, review the returned audio and text, and use the delete control when finished.