What are the key takeaways from “The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski” on a16z?
Voice AI: The Next Human-Computer Interface Revolution
Insights from the a16z episode “The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski”, published February 6, 2026.
Frequently asked questions about “The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski”
What is "The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski" about?
In "The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski" (a16z, February 2026), 11 Labs, founded on a unique vision from Polish movie dubbing, is pioneering hyper-realistic AI voice, aiming to make it the dominant interface. Their rapid growth and remote-first culture emphasize talent and autonomy, envisioning a future where language barriers disappear and machines evoke human emotion through sound.
What does "Vocal Turing Test" mean in "The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski"?
In "The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski", This concept extends the traditional Turing Test to the realm of voice, focusing on emotional and contextual intelligence beyond mere sound replication. For 11 Labs, it's the ultimate goal, signifying a breakthrough where AI voice can truly connect with humans, enabling faster, more information-rich, and emotionally resonant communication with machines, fundamentally…
What does "Raw Audio Training" mean in "The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski"?
In "The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski", Unlike training on text units or tokens, which are human-created abstractions, raw audio training allows AI to capture a far richer, more nuanced set of information including intonation, rhythm, and emotional cues. For 11 Labs, this is critical for achieving the 'vocal Turing test' and developing truly empathetic and intelligent audio AI, as it enables the model to learn…
What does "Proof of Excellence" mean in "The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski"?
In "The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski", 11 Labs actively seeks candidates who have excelled in non-traditional ways, such as open-source contributions, competitive gaming, or self-driven projects. This approach ensures they hire individuals with genuine drive and capability, regardless of their formal background. It allows the company to build a highly motivated and innovative team that is uniquely suited to…
What does "Flat Hierarchy" mean in "The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski"?
In "The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski", 11 Labs consciously adopted a flat hierarchy with no formal titles to foster a low-ego environment, encourage direct contribution, and empower employees to take full ownership of their work. This structure facilitates rapid decision-making and allows the company to move quickly, crucial for a fast-growing startup in a cutting-edge field, by removing bureaucratic…
What does "The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski" say about voice is poised to become the next fundamental?
In "The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski", Voice is poised to become the next fundamental interface for humans interacting with computers, much like touchscreens and keyboards transformed previous generations. This transition will shift user interaction from screen-first to background integration, enabling greater presence and immersion in diverse learning and cultural contexts.
What is this episode about?
11 Labs, founded on a unique vision from Polish movie dubbing, is pioneering hyper-realistic AI voice, aiming to make it the dominant interface. Their rapid growth and remote-first culture emphasize talent and autonomy, envisioning a future where language barriers disappear and machines evoke human emotion through sound.
What are the key takeaways?
Insights from the a16z episode “The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski”, published February 6, 2026.
Voice is poised to become the next fundamental interface for humans interacting with computers, much like touchscreens and keyboards transformed previous generations. — This transition will shift user interaction from screen-first to background integration, enabling greater presence and immersion in diverse learning and cultural contexts.
11 Labs was founded to solve the problem of emotionless foreign movie dubbing in Poland, where a single narrator often voices all characters, eliminating emotional nuance. — This personal experience drove the company's core mission to develop AI voices that not only sound human but also convey the full spectrum of human emotion, bridging cultural and linguistic divides.
The company's rapid growth from a few thousand to hundreds of thousands of users after launch underscored the high market demand for advanced voice AI solutions. — This validates the immense potential of realistic voice synthesis and indicates a strong user appetite for technology that enhances communication and content creation.
11 Labs emphasizes hiring for 'proof of excellence' from non-traditional backgrounds and maintains a remote-first, high-autonomy, low-bureaucracy culture with no explicit titles. — This unique hiring and organizational strategy fosters innovation, attracts top global talent, and empowers employees to take ownership, directly contributing to rapid product development and cultural preservation during hyper-growth.
The ultimate challenge for 11 Labs is to be the first company to cross the 'vocal Turing test,' creating AI that is not only human-sounding but also super smart and empathetic. — Achieving this milestone would unlock unprecedented levels of natural interaction with machines, allowing AI to process and generate nuanced emotional responses, making voice the most information-rich AI modality.
What concepts are explained?
Insights from the a16z episode “The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski”, published February 6, 2026.
Vocal Turing Test: This concept extends the traditional Turing Test to the realm of voice, focusing on emotional and contextual intelligence beyond mere sound replication. For 11 Labs, it's the ultimate goal, signifying a breakthrough where AI voice can truly connect with humans, enabling faster, more information-rich, and emotionally resonant communication with machines, fundamentally changing human-computer interaction.
Raw Audio Training: Unlike training on text units or tokens, which are human-created abstractions, raw audio training allows AI to capture a far richer, more nuanced set of information including intonation, rhythm, and emotional cues. For 11 Labs, this is critical for achieving the 'vocal Turing test' and developing truly empathetic and intelligent audio AI, as it enables the model to learn directly from the fundamental data of sound.
Proof of Excellence: 11 Labs actively seeks candidates who have excelled in non-traditional ways, such as open-source contributions, competitive gaming, or self-driven projects. This approach ensures they hire individuals with genuine drive and capability, regardless of their formal background. It allows the company to build a highly motivated and innovative team that is uniquely suited to tackle complex, cutting-edge problems in AI.
Flat Hierarchy: 11 Labs consciously adopted a flat hierarchy with no formal titles to foster a low-ego environment, encourage direct contribution, and empower employees to take full ownership of their work. This structure facilitates rapid decision-making and allows the company to move quickly, crucial for a fast-growing startup in a cutting-edge field, by removing bureaucratic bottlenecks and fostering a culture of trust.
Notable quotes
Insights from the a16z episode “The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski”, published February 6, 2026.
“The new challenge we've really set ourselves is can we be the first company to cross this threshold of the vocal cheuring test.”
— a16z, “The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski”
“If you train a model on text, you're basically using text units tokens that are uh created by humans where if you train a general audio generation model, you're training on on raw audio.”
— a16z, “The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski”
“We were like especially in the early days trying to hire for some proof of excellence that that people would do and and it could be an open source project.”
— a16z, “The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski”
“You have said voice is uh poised to become the next fundamental interface for humans interacting with computers just as mouth touch screens and keyboards.”
— a16z, “The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski”
“The few thousand turned into a few hundred thousand of users and that was a magnitude probably higher than like we expected in the first order.”
— a16z, “The Story Behind ElevenLabs | Interview with CEO Mati Staniszewski”
Who should listen to this episode?
AI founders, language tech innovators, remote team leaders, investors in deep tech, and anyone interested in the future of human-computer interaction.
This summary was generated by Yedapo and may contain inaccuracies. It does not represent the views of the original creators.
30-second answer
Voice AI: The Next Human-Computer Interface Revolution
11 Labs, founded on a unique vision from Polish movie dubbing, is pioneering hyper-realistic AI voice, aiming to make it the dominant interface. Their rapid growth and remote-first culture emphasize talent and autonomy, envisioning a future where language barriers disappear and machines evoke human emotion through sound.
Bottom line
11 Labs is redefining human-computer interaction by developing AI voices so realistic and empathetic they can surpass the 'vocal Turing test,' making voice the next fundamental interface.
This shift to voice as a primary interface promises to dissolve language barriers, enable deeper immersion in diverse cultures, and unlock new dimensions of emotional interaction with machines, fundamentally changing daily life and global communication.
Best moment
Matty Staniszewski articulates the profound, almost philosophical, impact of voice AI's ability to evoke emotion, an aspect unmatched by any other AI modality.
Five takeaways
If you only read this, you've got it.
1
Voice is poised to become the next fundamental interface for humans interacting with computers, much like touchscreens and keyboards transformed previous generations.
This transition will shift user interaction from screen-first to background integration, enabling greater presence and immersion in diverse learning and cultural contexts.
2
11 Labs was founded to solve the problem of emotionless foreign movie dubbing in Poland, where a single narrator often voices all characters, eliminating emotional nuance.
This personal experience drove the company's core mission to develop AI voices that not only sound human but also convey the full spectrum of human emotion, bridging cultural and linguistic divides.
3
The company's rapid growth from a few thousand to hundreds of thousands of users after launch underscored the high market demand for advanced voice AI solutions.
This validates the immense potential of realistic voice synthesis and indicates a strong user appetite for technology that enhances communication and content creation.
4
11 Labs emphasizes hiring for 'proof of excellence' from non-traditional backgrounds and maintains a remote-first, high-autonomy, low-bureaucracy culture with no explicit titles.
This unique hiring and organizational strategy fosters innovation, attracts top global talent, and empowers employees to take ownership, directly contributing to rapid product development and cultural preservation during hyper-growth.
5
The ultimate challenge for 11 Labs is to be the first company to cross the 'vocal Turing test,' creating AI that is not only human-sounding but also super smart and empathetic.
Achieving this milestone would unlock unprecedented levels of natural interaction with machines, allowing AI to process and generate nuanced emotional responses, making voice the most information-rich AI modality.
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Key Claims & Implications
This table helps to understand the core assertions made by 11 Labs and their potential impact on technology and society.
Subject
Takeaway
Why it matters
Caveat
Voice as the Next Fundamental Interface
Voice will evolve from a secondary input to the primary mode of human-computer interaction, surpassing screens.
This shift allows users to be more present, removes language barriers for global immersion, and enables more natural, intuitive interactions with technology.
Requires significant advancements in AI empathy and intelligence to truly replicate human conversational nuances and emotional connection.
11 Labs' Origin Story
The company was founded to address the lack of emotionality in single-narrator foreign movie dubbing in Poland.
This direct, personal experience with emotionless voice-over highlights a critical gap in existing technology, driving the mission to create truly emotive AI voices.
While a strong personal motivator, scaling this specific emotional nuance across all languages and contexts presents complex technical challenges.
Hiring for 'Proof of Excellence'
11 Labs recruits talent from non-traditional backgrounds who demonstrate exceptional abilities, often through side projects or competitive achievements.
This strategy bypasses traditional credentials to find individuals with raw talent and passion, fostering a highly innovative and results-driven team capable of rapid advancements.
Integrating diverse, highly autonomous individuals requires strong cultural alignment and clear vision to avoid potential fragmentation or conflicting approaches.
Remote-First, Flat Hierarchy Culture
Despite rapid growth, 11 Labs operates globally with small, highly autonomous teams and no formal job titles.
This structure minimizes bureaucracy, encourages low ego, and empowers employees to make decisions quickly, accelerating product development and enabling access to top global talent regardless of location.
Maintaining cohesive culture and consistent product direction can become challenging as the company scales significantly, requiring robust communication and trust frameworks.
The Vocal Turing Test
11 Labs aims to be the first to develop AI that not only sounds human but also understands context and expresses genuine empathy.
Achieving this will transform human-machine interaction, making it faster, more information-rich, and capable of evoking emotional responses, thus unlocking new applications across various industries.
The ethical implications of AI capable of genuine empathy and emotional manipulation are vast and require careful consideration as the technology approaches this capability.
Voice as the Next Fundamental Interface
Voice will evolve from a secondary input to the primary mode of human-computer interaction, surpassing screens.
This shift allows users to be more present, removes language barriers for global immersion, and enables more natural, intuitive interactions with technology.
Requires significant advancements in AI empathy and intelligence to truly replicate human conversational nuances and emotional connection.
11 Labs' Origin Story
The company was founded to address the lack of emotionality in single-narrator foreign movie dubbing in Poland.
This direct, personal experience with emotionless voice-over highlights a critical gap in existing technology, driving the mission to create truly emotive AI voices.
While a strong personal motivator, scaling this specific emotional nuance across all languages and contexts presents complex technical challenges.
Hiring for 'Proof of Excellence'
11 Labs recruits talent from non-traditional backgrounds who demonstrate exceptional abilities, often through side projects or competitive achievements.
This strategy bypasses traditional credentials to find individuals with raw talent and passion, fostering a highly innovative and results-driven team capable of rapid advancements.
Integrating diverse, highly autonomous individuals requires strong cultural alignment and clear vision to avoid potential fragmentation or conflicting approaches.
Remote-First, Flat Hierarchy Culture
Despite rapid growth, 11 Labs operates globally with small, highly autonomous teams and no formal job titles.
This structure minimizes bureaucracy, encourages low ego, and empowers employees to make decisions quickly, accelerating product development and enabling access to top global talent regardless of location.
Maintaining cohesive culture and consistent product direction can become challenging as the company scales significantly, requiring robust communication and trust frameworks.
The Vocal Turing Test
11 Labs aims to be the first to develop AI that not only sounds human but also understands context and expresses genuine empathy.
Achieving this will transform human-machine interaction, making it faster, more information-rich, and capable of evoking emotional responses, thus unlocking new applications across various industries.
The ethical implications of AI capable of genuine empathy and emotional manipulation are vast and require careful consideration as the technology approaches this capability.
One thing to do · 30min
Explore 11 Labs' current voice synthesis and cloning tools to understand capabilities.
Gaining firsthand experience with leading AI voice technology will illustrate the current state of realistic voice generation and its potential applications for content creation or accessibility.
“11 Labs' co-founders were inspired by the poor, single-voice dubbing of foreign movies in Poland, where all characters, regardless of gender, were voiced by one narrator, stripping all emotionality from the dialogue.”
Full Context
A 2-minute read.
11 Labs is driving a paradigm shift, asserting that voice is poised to become the next fundamental interface for humans interacting with computers, paralleling the transformative impact of touchscreens and keyboards. This profound transition promises a future where technology recedes into the background, fostering greater human presence and dissolving global language barriers by enabling true immersion in diverse cultures and understanding of nuanced emotional expression. Matty Staniszewski, CEO of 11 Labs, explains that their mission was born from a frustrating personal experience in Poland, where foreign movies were often narrated by a single voice for all characters, stripping away all emotional context and intonation. This pivotal insight fueled their commitment to developing AI that could not only generate realistic voices but also convey the full spectrum of human emotion.
After a successful early launch that saw user numbers explode from thousands to hundreds of thousands, 11 Labs validated a massive demand for their technology. This rapid adoption underscored the product's ability to solve real-world problems, from enhancing content creation to improving accessibility. The company's core product philosophy marries deep research with practical application, ensuring that scientific breakthroughs directly translate into user value. Matty emphasizes a virtuous cycle where product feedback directly informs research, and research models are immediately tested on the product, accelerating innovation. The rapid scaling of the company, from two founders to hundreds of employees across 11 cities, highlights its successful execution.
11 Labs' organizational culture is as innovative as its technology. They intentionally hire for 'proof of excellence' from non-traditional backgrounds, seeking out individuals who demonstrate exceptional capability through open-source projects, competitive achievements, or unique problem-solving skills, rather than relying solely on academic credentials. This strategy has attracted a diverse team, including individuals with backgrounds in astrophysics, White House policy, and professional gaming. Furthermore, the company operates on a remote-first model with a flat, fuzzy hierarchy and no formal job titles, a deliberate choice to foster low ego, high autonomy, and rapid decision-making. This structure allows them to recruit top global talent, believing that the best researchers in voice AI are few and far between, located worldwide.
The company is now focused on its most ambitious goal: to be the first to cross the 'vocal Turing test'. This means creating an AI that is not just indistinguishable from a human voice but also super smart, empathetic, and capable of genuine back-and-forth interaction. Matty argues that voice is the only AI modality that can truly make a human feel something, distinguishing it from text, which, while capable of poetry, lacks the emotive power of a voice. Training models on raw audio, rather than text tokens, is seen as crucial for capturing this deeper level of information and achieving advanced intelligence. Ultimately, 11 Labs envisions a future where most human-machine communication occurs through voice, not only because it's faster but because it's inherently more information-rich and emotionally resonant.
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