Activate invests in ElevenLabs, bets big on India’s voice AI opportunity

Activate, an investment firm focused on artificial intelligence, has made a significant move by investing in ElevenLabs, a pioneering voice AI startup. This marks the firm's inaugural growth-stage investment since its inception earlier this year. In a recent Series D funding round led by ICONIQ Capital and Andreessen Horowitz, ElevenLabs achieved a remarkable valuation of $11 billion. The startup has also attracted strategic investments from major players like Nvidia and BlackRock in recent weeks, although the specifics of Activate's investment remain undisclosed. Unlike its primary early-stage fund, Activate's investment in ElevenLabs was executed through a dedicated strategic vehicle aimed at late-stage AI companies with strong ties to India. This collaboration will see Activate assisting ElevenLabs in enhancing its footprint in India and supporting local startups and enterprises that are developing products utilizing its voice AI technology. ElevenLabs, established in 2022, specializes in creating AI models for speech synthesis, dubbing, and conversational voice agents. The company has reported that India has quickly become its second-largest market by revenue. "Voice AI represents a tremendous opportunity for India," stated Aakrit Vaish, founder of Activate. "Our mission transcends mere investment; we aim to nurture the ecosystem surrounding Indian startups by connecting them with global AI leaders." Mati Staniszewski, co-founder of ElevenLabs, echoed this sentiment, emphasizing that India is one of their largest markets and one of the fastest in the world to embrace voice AI. He highlighted the remarkable and innovative ways in which builders and enterprises across India are leveraging this technology.