ElevenLabs, a startup specializing in AI voice technology, has achieved unicorn status just two years after its founding. Co-founded by former Google and Palantir employees Piotr Dabkowski and Mati Staniszewski, the company recently completed a series B funding round, raising $80 million. This funding round, co-led by Andreessen Horowitz, Nat Friedman, and Daniel Gross, among others, catapulted ElevenLabs’ valuation to $1.1 billion.
The startup, renowned for its advancements in machine learning-driven voice cloning and synthesis across multiple languages, plans to utilize this capital infusion to bolster its research efforts and enhance its product offerings. Among the announced updates are new features like a tool for dubbing entire movies and a marketplace where users can monetize their cloned voices. These updates are slated for rollout in the coming weeks.
ElevenLabs addresses the challenge of localizing content in diverse linguistic landscapes by leveraging AI to synthesize natural-sounding voices. Initially focusing on English, the company has expanded its capabilities to include languages such as Polish, German, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, and Hindi through its Eleven Multilingual v1 and v2 models. The Voice Lab feature allows users to clone their own voices or create entirely new synthetic voices, catering to diverse audio content needs.
Piotr Dabkowski highlighted ElevenLabs’ technology, emphasizing its ability to deliver highly realistic speech by understanding contextual nuances and dynamically adjusting speech delivery without hardcoded features. This approach has garnered significant traction, with over a million users adopting ElevenLabs’ tools, including Fortune 500 companies and major publishers like Storytel, The Washington Post, and TheSoul Publishing.
Looking ahead, ElevenLabs aims to expand its market presence and enhance user experience through innovations like the Dubbing Studio, designed for professional users to dub movies and exert greater control over production elements. Additionally, the company is launching an accessibility app for converting text into audio and a Voice Library marketplace where users can sell their AI-cloned voices. These initiatives are expected to drive further growth and innovation within the AI voice technology space.
With ambitions to solidify its position as a global leader in AI voice research and deployment, ElevenLabs plans to continue advancing its technology and expanding its product offerings. The company’s growth trajectory aligns with projections for substantial market expansion in AI-powered voice and speech generation, reflecting a dynamic market expected to grow to nearly $5 billion by 2032.