British AI start-up ElevenLabs has doubled its valuation to $22 billion following a $300 million employee share sale, the company announced recently. Founded in 2022 by former Palantir employee Mati Staniszewski and Google machine-learning engineer Piotr Dabkowski, ElevenLabs specializes in advanced voice generation technology that converts text into highly realistic human-like speech. The technology also allows users to create sound effects and compose music across various genres.

The new valuation more than doubles ElevenLabs’ previous $11 billion figure from its Series D funding round in February. This places the company on par with France’s Mistral, which reached a $24 billion valuation last month, marking one of Europe’s largest private technology equity rounds.

The $300 million transaction, led by American investment firms Wellington Management and T. Rowe Price, introduced new investors including Goldman Sachs, EQT, and Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC. Previous backers include actor Matthew McConaughey, Sequoia Capital, and Andreessen Horowitz.

ElevenLabs reported substantial growth in the adoption of its technology, with its AI agents managing over 15 million weekly conversations, a threefold increase since February. These interactions range from customer service tasks such as processing refunds and renewing insurance policies to booking healthcare appointments. Enterprise clients now generate approximately 55 percent of the company’s revenue.

CEO Mati Staniszewski emphasized the company’s vision for AI, stating that its goal is to enable technology to interact with people as naturally as individuals communicate with each other. He highlighted the significance of widespread adoption across different sectors, allowing users of varying technical expertise to benefit from AI advancements. The company has seen rapid uptake of its expressive voice agents among enterprises and governmental organizations.

Through the employee share sale, ElevenLabs also aims to share the value generated by its growing customer base with its workforce. The start-up’s latest funding milestone underscores its rising influence in the AI sector and its commitment to expanding the application of voice-based AI technologies across global markets.