ElevenLabs valuation doubles to $22B via employee tender offer
Original: AI voice startup ElevenLabs doubles valuation to $22B
Why This Matters
At $22B, ElevenLabs signals that voice AI is now a standalone category drawing institutional-grade capital.
Voice AI startup ElevenLabs announced a $300 million tender offer on September 30, 2026, letting employees sell vested equity at a $22 billion valuation — double the $11 billion it reached after raising $500 million in February 2026. Wellington and T. Rowe Price co-led the transaction.
ElevenLabs, the New York- and London-based voice AI company founded in 2022, has authorized its second employee secondary transaction, this time at a $22 billion valuation. The $300 million tender offer was co-led by Wellington and T. Rowe Price — institutional investors known for holding private-company stakes through IPO. The valuation doubles the $11 billion ElevenLabs achieved after its $500 million primary raise in February 2026. The company ran a prior $100 million tender at a $6.6 billion valuation in September 2025, meaning its valuation has more than tripled in roughly one year. ElevenLabs is best known for generating ultra-realistic synthetic voices and sound effects. With this new figure, it ranks among Europe's most valuable startups. The tender offer reflects a broader shift in late-stage AI: employee liquidity events are increasingly used as retention tools, competing with compensation packages that rivals can offer to poach talent.