14-6-2023 (LONDON) Synthesia, a leading artificial intelligence (AI) startup based in the UK, announced on Tuesday that it has secured approximately $90 million in a funding round led by venture capital firms Accel and NVentures, a subsidiary of Nvidia.
The startup’s cutting-edge technology, utilized by over 50,000 businesses including Amazon.com, enables the creation of customized AI avatars for use in instructional and corporate videos.
Victor Riparbelli, co-founder and CEO of Synthesia, expressed his enthusiasm for the investment, stating, “While we weren’t actively seeking new funding, Accel and NVIDIA share our vision of revolutionizing traditional video production through digital workflows.”
Amid a broader slowdown in funding caused by rising interest rates and high inflation, AI startups have emerged as a promising sector for investments. However, the increasing prominence of AI has raised concerns about the potential misuse of video platforms for generating deepfakes—realistic or fabricated videos or images created through AI algorithms trained on vast amounts of online content.
Riparbelli addressed these concerns by emphasizing that Synthesia only creates avatars of individuals who have provided their consent.
Achieving a valuation of $1 billion, Synthesia joins the ranks of “unicorns,” a term used to describe startups that reach this significant milestone.
