ElevenLabs raises $500 million at $11 billion valuation

ElevenLabs, an AI voice technology company, has secured $500 million in funding this week at an $11 billion valuation. The investment underscores the company’s position in the voice AI market and signals an industry transition toward voice-first systems.

According to ElevenLabs co-founder and CEO Mati Staniszewski, voice is becoming the next major interface for AI. Staniszewski argues that voice models have evolved to work alongside the reasoning capabilities of large language models. He envisions a hands-free future, stating: “hopefully all our phones will go back in our pockets, and we can immerse ourselves in the real world around us, with voice as the mechanism that controls technology.” Seth Pierrepont, a general partner at the investment firm Iconiq Capital, supported this outlook, stating that traditional input methods like keyboards are starting to feel “outdated.”

The industry is moving to capture this interface shift. OpenAI and Google, both AI industry peers focusing on voice models, are prioritizing voice-driven interactions, while Apple is building voice-adjacent technologies, having acquired the company Q.ai. To support these systems in wearables, ElevenLabs is pursuing a hybrid approach—defined as a processing strategy blending cloud and on-device computation. This architecture is designed to support agentic AI, which refers to AI systems capable of taking actions and making decisions with less explicit user prompting. According to Staniszewski, future voice systems will increasingly rely on persistent memory and context built up over time. ElevenLabs is already deploying its technology through a partnership with Meta, integrating its voice systems into Instagram and Horizon Worlds, Meta’s virtual-reality platform. Staniszewski also stated he would be open to working with Meta on its Ray-Ban smart glasses hardware as voice-driven interfaces expand.

But as voice technology becomes more persistent and embedded in everyday hardware, it raises concerns around privacy, surveillance, and data storage. The prospect of persistent voice systems acting as constant companions introduces risks, particularly given that companies like Google have already been accused of abusing such systems.

Why it matters

The $500 million funding round for ElevenLabs highlights a significant industry shift toward voice as a primary AI interface, with tech companies increasingly prioritizing voice-driven interactions over traditional screen-based inputs.