ElevenLabs CEO Predicts AI Speech to Pass Turing Test This Year Amidst $3.3 Billion Valuation

Mati Staniszewski, CEO of ElevenLabs, a leading AI audio company, has boldly predicted that artificial intelligence speech technology could pass the Turing Test as early as this year. This forecast comes as the company continues to advance its highly realistic voice synthesis and real-time translation capabilities, following a recent Series C funding round that valued the firm at $3.3 billion. Staniszewski emphasized the profound, yet "wildly under-hyped," cultural shift that a universal translator could bring.

ElevenLabs, co-founded by Staniszewski and Piotr Dabkowski, specializes in creating expressive and controllable AI voices, offering tools for speech generation, voice design, and dubbing across 32 languages. The company secured $180 million in its latest funding round in January 2025, co-led by Andreessen Horowitz and ICONIQ Growth, bringing its total funding to $281 million. This significant investment underscores investor confidence in the burgeoning AI audio market.

Staniszewski believes that AI will soon enable individuals to "speak any language, in your own voice, tone, and emotion, and be understood." This vision extends to a "universal translator," drawing parallels to the fictional Babel Fish from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Such technology aims to eliminate language barriers, fostering seamless global communication.

The company is actively tackling complex technical challenges, including reducing latency and preserving nuanced emotional cues in real-time conversations. ElevenLabs utilizes a three-step process involving speech-to-text, large language model (LLM) translation, and text-to-speech, with ongoing research into a more integrated "duplex" model for enhanced fluidity. Their "Flash Model" already boasts a rapid 75ms latency for text-to-speech.

ElevenLabs' technology is already being applied across various sectors, from powering conversational AI agents in customer support and healthcare to enabling multilingual dubbing for media and gaming. Notable partnerships include those with The New Yorker, The Washington Post, and Epic Games, where ElevenLabs recreated the voice of Darth Vader for Fortnite. The company also prioritizes AI safety, implementing robust mechanisms to trace content generation and prevent misuse.