ElevenLabs

ElevenLabs is a generative AI company specialising in audio technology. Founded in 2022 by Mati Staniszewski and Piotr Dabkowski, the company is headquartered in New York City. Its mission is to make content accessible in any language and voice. ElevenLabs uses advanced AI models to convert text to speech, offering tools for synthetic, cloned, or newly designed voices. These voices mimic various genders, ages, and ethnicities, allowing corporate customers to fine-tune models or create proprietary speech systems.

The company gained recognition for its ability to produce lifelike, contextually aware, and emotionally rich speech. Its technology supports diverse use cases, such as audiobook narration, dubbing, game character voicing, and assisting people with speech disabilities. ElevenLabs also addresses accessibility challenges and supports localisation for global media content.

ElevenLabs has raised $101 million in total funding. This includes $2 million in pre-seed funding, $19 million in Series A, and $80 million in Series B, which increased its valuation to $1.1 billion. Investors include Andreessen Horowitz, Nat Friedman, Daniel Gross, Sequoia Capital, and Credo Ventures. The company intends to use its funding to strengthen its infrastructure, expand research, and enhance AI safety measures.

Its key products include AI-powered text-to-speech models, a Voice Library for unique voice profiles, and tools like AI Dubbing, Projects, and a mobile app for voice synthesis. ElevenLabs supports over 30 languages and features tools for multilingual content generation, voice cloning, and speech detection.

ElevenLabs was founded in 2022 by Mati Staniszewski, a former Palantir deployment strategist, and Piotr Dabkowski, an ex-Google machine learning engineer. Both founders, originally from Poland, were motivated to create the company after observing the limitations of traditional dubbing in films. The organisation was established with the goal of making content universally accessible in any language and voice through advanced AI technology.

In its early stages, ElevenLabs secured $2 million in pre-seed funding in January 2023. This round was led by Credo Ventures and Concept Ventures. The funding allowed the company to launch its beta platform, which introduced its AI-powered text-to-speech tools to the public. The tools were designed to generate realistic speech, synthesising emotion and intonation to match text context.

By June 2023, ElevenLabs raised $19 million in Series A funding, led by Andreessen Horowitz, Nat Friedman, and Daniel Gross. Other investors included prominent individuals such as Instagram co-founder Mike Krieger and DeepMind co-founder Mustafa Suleyman. At the time, the company had only 15 employees but gained significant recognition for its innovative work. The funding helped ElevenLabs expand its team and technology.

In January 2024, ElevenLabs raised $80 million in Series B funding, bringing its total valuation to $1.1 billion. This funding round was led by Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, and others. The investment supported the launch of new products, including the Voice Marketplace, AI Dubbing Studio, and mobile applications.

In mid-2024, ElevenLabs introduced the ElevenLabs Reader App, allowing users to listen to articles and eBooks using AI voices. Additionally, it launched tools like Voice Isolator for noise reduction and a text-to-music model. The company’s voice cloning capabilities were expanded to over 30 languages, enhancing its multilingual and accessibility features.

As of now, ElevenLabs continues to advance AI audio research while addressing ethical concerns. It has implemented safeguards to mitigate misuse and collaborates with various organisations to promote responsible AI use. The company maintains its position as a leading innovator in AI-powered audio technology.

ElevenLabs' mission is to make content universally accessible in any language and voice. The company develops advanced AI-powered tools for text-to-speech and voice cloning, enabling the creation of realistic, contextually aware, and multilingual speech. By focusing on accessibility, localisation, and user-centred innovation, ElevenLabs aims to provide solutions for diverse industries, including publishing, entertainment, and accessibility. The organisation is committed to ensuring its technology is used responsibly, adhering to strict ethical guidelines to prevent misuse. ElevenLabs continues to enhance its research and products, enabling individuals and businesses to communicate effectively and inclusively across different languages and platforms.

ElevenLabs envisions a world where language and voice barriers no longer exist. The company aspires to shape the future of communication by developing AI technologies that allow content to be understood by everyone, everywhere. By creating tools that generate natural, multilingual, and emotionally rich speech, ElevenLabs aims to empower users with inclusive solutions for content creation, accessibility, and localisation. The organisation prioritises ethical AI development to ensure safe and responsible use of its technology. Through continuous innovation and collaboration, ElevenLabs seeks to lead advancements in voice AI and contribute to a more connected and accessible digital world.

ElevenLabs has gained significant recognition for its contributions to AI audio technology. It was named among the "Top AI Startups to Watch" by several industry analysts in 2023. Its innovative text-to-speech technology has been praised for its realism and multilingual capabilities. ElevenLabs has partnered with prominent organisations such as Disney, joining their prestigious 2024 Accelerator Program. The company's voice AI technology has been widely acknowledged in the media and entertainment industry for enabling accessibility and localisation. ElevenLabs continues to receive acclaim for its focus on ethical AI development, securing its position as a leader in voice technology innovation.

ElevenLabs offers a range of AI-powered products and services designed to create realistic, context-aware, and multilingual audio content. These solutions cater to individuals, businesses, and organisations across various industries, enabling effective communication and content localisation.

Text-to-Speech Technology

ElevenLabs’ flagship product is its advanced text-to-speech (TTS) technology. This AI-powered tool generates lifelike speech with accurate intonation, pacing, and emotional context. The technology can detect the sentiment of the text, such as happiness or sadness, and adjust the voice output accordingly. It supports over 30 languages, making it a versatile tool for global users.

Voice Cloning

ElevenLabs’ voice cloning technology enables users to create synthetic voices based on a few short samples of real speech. This tool is ideal for content creators, businesses, and individuals who require custom voice profiles. Users can replicate voices to maintain consistency across content or create entirely new synthetic voices tailored to their needs.

Voice Library

The Voice Library provides a collection of pre-designed voice profiles created using ElevenLabs’ Voice Design technology. With over 1,000 community-created voices, users can choose profiles that best suit their projects without designing a new voice from scratch.

AI Dubbing Studio

The AI Dubbing Studio is designed to translate and localise video content into more than 20 languages while preserving the original speaker’s voice and emotional tone. This tool is widely used in media and entertainment to make content accessible to diverse audiences without losing authenticity.

Projects

The Projects tool allows users to create long-form audio content such as audiobooks, dialogue, or podcasts. It provides contextually aware synthetic voices, enabling seamless narration and dialogue creation for professional use. This feature is particularly beneficial for publishers and content creators who need high-quality, scalable audio production.

Voice Isolator

The Voice Isolator removes background noise from audio recordings, ensuring clearer sound quality. It is an essential tool for creating polished, professional-grade content, especially in noisy environments.

ElevenLabs Reader App

The ElevenLabs Reader App, available for iOS and Android, lets users listen to articles, PDFs, and eBooks using AI-generated voices. This app is convenient for on-the-go learning and accessibility, providing a seamless way to consume written content audibly.

Text-to-Music Model

The Text-to-Music model is an innovative product that allows users to create music directly from text input. This tool is ideal for enhancing multimedia content with unique, AI-generated musical elements.

API Solutions

ElevenLabs offers API access to its AI tools, enabling businesses to integrate these technologies into their own platforms. The API allows for low-latency, scalable deployment of conversational AI and other audio-based applications.

Applications Across Industries

ElevenLabs’ products serve a variety of industries, including publishing, media and entertainment, education, and accessibility. For example:

• Publishing: Narrating audiobooks, articles, and newsletters.
• Entertainment: Voicing game characters, dubbing films, and animating videos.
• Accessibility: Supporting individuals with speech disabilities or language barriers.
• Customer Service: Deploying interactive AI agents for businesses.

ElevenLabs continues to enhance its offerings, ensuring its products meet the needs of diverse users while maintaining a focus on ethical and responsible AI use.