ElevenLabs just doubled its valuation to $22 billion in a fresh employee tender offer, giving staff a rare chance to sell vested shares at a price that underscores the frenzy around AI voice technology.
The startup, known for generating strikingly realistic voices and sound effects, hit an $11 billion valuation only eight months ago after raising $500 million. Now Wellington and T. Rowe Price have co-led a $300 million secondary transaction, purchasing shares directly from employees.
Big institutional investors like these typically buy private company stock intending to hold it through an eventual IPO. Their participation signals confidence in ElevenLabs’ long-term trajectory.
The secondary offering follows a pattern spreading across fast-growing AI companies. Startups increasingly use employee liquidity programs as retention tools, giving workers financial upside without forcing them to wait for an acquisition or public listing. Rivals like OpenAI and Anthropic have run similar tenders amid fierce competition for AI talent.
This marks ElevenLabs’ second employee liquidity event. In September 2025, the company authorized a $100 million tender at a $6.6 billion valuation.
Founded in 2022, the New York and London-based company now ranks among Europe’s most valuable private startups. It has ridden the wave of generative AI adoption, building tools that convert text into speech with uncanny naturalness.
CEO Mati Staniszewski spoke with TechCrunch last week as reports of the $22 billion valuation began circulating. The formal announcement confirms those numbers.
With the tender closed, attention shifts to whether ElevenLabs pursues a public offering or continues raising private capital at escalating valuations. For now, employees can finally convert some paper wealth into cash.
