Audio stops when an iPhone screen turns off

iOS can pause audio in the background when you lock the screen or switch apps. How to handle it depends on whether you’re running the service or listening to it.

If you’re hosting the service

Don’t host from an iPhone. iOS may stop the stream when the screen locks or you move to another app, which interrupts translation for everyone. Run your service from a laptop or desktop instead, which is more reliable for hosting in every way.

If you’re listening

• The audio should keep playing in the background, but keep the browser tab open rather than closing it.
• If the sound drops after the screen has been off a while, wake the phone and refresh the page to reconnect.
• Using earbuds or headphones can help keep playback active and makes listening easier in a busy room.

If a listener keeps losing audio, switching to the captions view is a reliable fallback, since reading isn’t affected by background audio limits.