Stability AI has raised fresh funds from UK advertising group WPP, seeking to steady the ship after a tumultuous few years plagued by exec departures and legal woes.
While the amount of new funding is undisclosed, earlier reports suggested the startup was looking to raise a further $30m after picking up $50m from investors including Lightspeed Venture Partners, ex-Facebook president Sean Parker and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt last July.
As part of the deal, WPP plans to use Stability AI’s models across its image, video and audio output, while establishing a joint research and development pipeline.
Stability AI has built a suite of image, video and audio generation tools similar to those created by OpenAI and Google. The UK startup was involved in the financing of the development of image generation model Stable Diffusion.
“Not only will this partnership accelerate the adoption we’re already seeing, but it’ll also enhance our ability to develop innovative products customized for creative professionals’ unique needs,” said Prem Akkaraju, CEO of Stability AI, in a statement.
The company burst onto the startup scene in 2022 with a $101m round at a $1bn valuation — but has since faced big challenges in the form of key staff leaving and a court case from media company Getty Images.
CEO and founder Emad Mostaque stepped down from the helm last year, a number of senior technical staff quit and Stability AI made layoffs. The startup also saw Hollywood director James Cameron join its board in September.
This latest partnership with WPP solidifies Stability AI’s late 2023 pivot that saw the startup put its most advanced AI models behind a paywall for enterprise customers.
Other Stability AI investors include Greycroft, Coatue Management and Sound Ventures.
Read the orginal article: https://sifted.eu/articles/stability-ai-raise-news/
