ElevenLabs raises $500M from Sequoia at an $11 billion valuation
ElevenLabs Secures $500 Million in Investment Led by Sequoia Capital
Voice AI company ElevenLabs revealed today that it has successfully raised $500 million in a funding round spearheaded by Sequoia Capital. Interestingly, Sequoia also participated in the startup's prior secondary round through a tender offer. As part of this latest investment, Sequoia partner Andrew Reed will join the company’s board of directors.
Valuation Hits $11 Billion
The startup's valuation has now reached $11 billion, reflecting a substantial increase—more than tripling its valuation from the previous funding round in January 2025. Earlier this year, the Financial Times reported that the company was targeting this valuation during its fundraising efforts.
Participation from Existing and New Investors
ElevenLabs emphasized that current investor a16z quadrupled its investment in this round, while Iconiq, the lead investor of the previous round, tripled its commitment. Furthermore, several returning investors, such as BroadLight, NFDG, Valor Capital, AMP Coalition, and Smash Capital, also took part. New investors joining this round include Lightspeed Venture Partners, Evantic Capital, and Bond.
Strategic Partnerships and Fund Allocation
The company disclosed plans to unveil additional investors, potentially strategic partners, later in February. With this fresh capital, ElevenLabs has now raised over $781 million in total. The funds will mainly be used for research, product development, and international expansion into regions like India, Japan, Singapore, Brazil, and Mexico.
Pioneering Beyond Voice Technology
Co-founder Mati Staniszewski shared that ElevenLabs is venturing into territory beyond voice AI, with plans to integrate video and potentially other agent-driven technologies. In January, the company announced its collaboration with LTX to create audio-to-video content.
“The convergence of models and products is crucial – and our team has repeatedly demonstrated how to bring research to life in practical applications. This investment enables us to move beyond voice alone, reshaping how people engage with technology. We aim to expand our Creative offering – empowering creators to merge our best-in-class audio with video and Agents – and paving the way for businesses to develop agents capable of speaking, typing, and taking action,”
Impressive Growth Trajectory
ElevenLabs has shown remarkable growth, closing the year with a strong $330 million ARR. In an earlier discussion with Bloomberg, Staniszewski noted that the company achieved the leap from $200 million to $300 million ARR in just five months.
Evolving Competitive Landscape
The voice AI industry continues to draw significant attention from investors and tech giants. In January, ElevenLabs' competitor Deepgram secured $130 million in funding at a $1.3 billion valuation from AVP. At the same time, Google has actively been recruiting talent from the sector, including hiring Hume AI CEO Alan Cowen.
