Mirelo raises $41M from Index and a16z to solve the silent problem of AI video

AI allows anyone to create videos, but many AI-based video creation tools lack audio support. Merillo It builds artificial intelligence that adds audio clips to match the video’s motion.

Earlier this year, the Berlin-based startup released Mirelo SFX v1.5, an AI model that interprets videos to add synchronized sound effects (SFX).

This has attracted the attention of venture capital firms preparing to Generative AI revolution in games. The two-year-old German startup has raised a $41 million seed round led by Index Ventures and Andreessen Horowitz, TechCrunch has exclusively learned.

The new capital will help Merillo compete more effectively in its emerging category. While still in stealth mode and limited in resources, big companies like Sony and Tencent released video-to-SFX conversion models. So did Kuaishou-owned Kling AI, out of China Eleven laboratorieswhich is also supported by the a16z.

While Mirelo already differs from them in its narrow focus, overcoming these models in the long term will require the startup to make additional hires. In all, the startup expects to double, if not triple, the number of employees on its 10-person team by the end of next year, Mirelo CEO and co-founder CJ Simon-Gabriel told TechCrunch.

These new employees will support Mirelo’s research and development, as well as its product and go-to-market strategy. The startup published its models on Fal.ai and repetitionSimon Gabriel said the use of the API is expected to increase most of its revenue in the short term. But it’s also investing in building its own workspace for creatives, Mirelo Studio, which can eventually support full professional use.

As Merillo prepares to expand, the startup and its investors also anticipate concerns over training data that have roiled other AI product companies. According to Georgia Stevenson, who led Index’s investments, Merillo has based its models on public and purchased audio libraries, and is signing revenue-sharing partnerships that respect artists’ rights.

It’s an inherent tension in generative AI tools, but Merillo doesn’t replace musicians and sound designers — at least not yet. With a freemium model that includes a recommended plan for creators at €20 per month (about $23.50), the startup mostly targets hobbyists and consumers hoping to unmute their AI-generated videos.

According to Simon Gabriel, content creators can’t fully take advantage of this new capability without audio.

He said: “George Lucas said that sound constitutes 50% of the movie watching experience. This is not an exaggeration.” “If anything, it’s an understatement. You can take exactly the same photos, and the sound will create a completely different vibe, depending on the sound and music you put there.”

He and his co-founder, Florian Wenzel, are both AI researchers and musicians, and the startup has AI music generation on its roadmap. But Merillo sees more appeal for sound effects, partly because there’s less research being done than in other areas of artificial intelligence, Simon Gabriel said.

“It is easier to build a real trench here and then benefit from it,” he noted.

This could pay off for Merillo. Simon Gabriel declined to reveal his new valuation, but said it had increased “quite significantly” compared to the previously undisclosed pre-seed round. This earlier round was led by Berlin-based Atlantic, which also participated in the new financing, bringing Merillo’s total amount raised to $44 million and helping to close the resource gap.

The startup is also backed by angels who lend credibility to its technology and could open new doors, including Mistral CEO Arthur Mensch, Hugging Face Chief Science Officer Thomas Wolff, Fal.ai co-founder Burkay Gur, and others.

However, the team realizes that AI-generated videos may not remain silent for long.

For example, Gemini’s video generator now includes audio clips supported by DeepMind’s Veo 3.1 video-to-audio model. But if anything, Simon Gabriel seems vindicated. “And now, all of a sudden, people realize: ‘Oh, maybe we should add sound.’ But, of course, you have to add some. It’s a bit like silent films versus talkies, isn’t it? It makes a big difference!”