Voice.ai has raised $6 million in funding as its real-time voice changer technology gains popularity with nearly 500,000 users. The funding will be used to expand the technology into new areas, hire more technical talent, develop SDKs and APIs for platforms like Meta, Unreal, and Unity, and introduce multi-language support. Voice.ai’s affordable voice modification tools aim to democratize access to AI voice technology, catering to individuals looking to enhance their online presence. The company also plans to build a network of developers to integrate its technology.
The emergence of AI-powered image and text generation services like Midjourney and ChatGPT has expanded the possibilities of artificial intelligence. Now, audio manipulation is becoming the next frontier. Recent months have witnessed advancements in technologies such as music generation based on word prompts, AI language learning tutors, and voice simulators. Voice.ai aims to contribute to this trend with its real-time voice changer technology, and it has recently raised $6 million in external funding following its early success.
With over 480,000 users and a library of more than 50,000 voice filters, Voice.ai plans to utilize the funding to expand the reach of its voice-changing technology. The funding round is being led by Mucker Capital and M13. Before this, Voice.ai had grown organically through word of mouth, supported by $3 million in self-funding.
Currently, Voice.ai’s tools are available as applications for Mac, PC, Android, and iOS. They have gained popularity among gamers, content creators, Vtubers, and users of platforms like TikTok, Zoom, Discord, Minecraft, GTA5, Fortnite, Valorant, League of Legends, Among Us, Skype, and WhatsApp. The Voice.ai interface allows users to create new voices or choose from a selection of 50,000 pre-created voices, which can be used as-is or modified in real-time on supported platforms or for recordings.
The funding will be allocated towards hiring additional technical talent and developing new software development kits (SDKs) and application programming interfaces (APIs) to integrate with platforms like Meta, Unreal, and Unity. Voice.ai also plans to add multi-language support and explore new applications, such as singing where voice takes center stage.
While the company has not explicitly mentioned it, there is a possibility that part of the funding will be used to expand server capacity. This is a significant challenge as GPU availability is currently a limiting factor for many AI applications’ scalability. As a workaround, Voice.ai processes the user’s voice locally and channels it to the desired platform using a “virtual audio cable.” However, user reviews often highlight the waitlist due to server capacity constraints caused by high demand.
The market already features numerous speech-to-voice and voice-to-speech services, with notable acquisitions by companies like Spotify and Snap. Voice.ai considers itself part of the same category as Respeecher and ElevenLabs, two voice-to-voice AI startups that enable users to modify or transform their voices, including the creation of synthetic voices.
Voice.ai aims to differentiate itself by providing affordable AI voice modification tools directly to consumers, contrasting with other companies focusing on enterprise solutions. The company seeks to democratize voice AI technology by working with the open-source community. Currently, most users access the free service, which utilizes their computational power to train Voice.ai’s models. However, specific pricing details are not available yet.
Voice.ai also takes a unique approach to voice manipulation, drawing inspiration from the use of avatars by Vtubers and gamers. Rather than replicating a person’s voice perfectly, Voice.ai’s speech-to-speech AI technology retains the user’s emotion, pacing, and emphasis while altering the sound of the voice, resulting in a unique output in real time.
Voice.ai’s current user base is predominantly male, but the company anticipates expanding into new user categories beyond gaming. This includes users leveraging avatars to match their voices, individuals seeking privacy protection, and transgender users who can represent their identities with matching voices.
Aside from its direct-to-consumer offerings, Voice.ai aims to build a network of developers who can integrate its technology. Mucker Capital, one of the investors, believes that Voice.ai has the potential to revolutionize the AI developer community by offering accessible solutions that were previously exclusive to large enterprises.
