ElevenLabs is an AI audio platform that converts text into human-sounding speech, clones voices, dubs video into 29 languages, and powers conversational AI agents. Founded in 2022 by Polish engineers Piotr Dąbkowski and Mati Staniszewski and headquartered in London, ElevenLabs reached an estimated $500 million in annualised revenue in April 2026 and is used by 41% of Fortune 500 companies. It is widely regarded as the most capable AI voice platform available today — and one of the most controversial.
What Is ElevenLabs? Three Platforms Explained
ElevenLabs organises its products across three platforms.
ElevenCreative is the content creation suite. It includes text-to-speech, voice cloning, AI dubbing, music generation, sound effects, and video tools. This is where most individual creators and content teams spend their time.
ElevenAgents is built for businesses deploying AI voice assistants. It lets teams configure, deploy, and monitor conversational agents across phone, chat, email, and WhatsApp — with built-in analytics, compliance guardrails, and workflow automation.
ElevenAPI gives developers programmatic access to the full suite, with APIs covering text-to-speech, speech-to-text, dubbing, music, and sound effects.
ElevenLabs Use Cases: Who Is Actually Using It
The platform serves a wide range of users, from independent creators to global enterprises.
Creators and individuals use ElevenLabs to narrate YouTube videos without recording equipment, publish podcasts across multiple languages, and produce audiobooks consistently at scale. Voice cloning means you can generate audio in your own voice from text alone — without re-recording every time content changes.
Celebrities and brands have adopted it in notable ways. Actor and investor Matthew McConaughey used ElevenLabs to produce a Spanish-language audio version of his newsletter Lyrics of Livin’ — in his own cloned voice, without speaking Spanish. Actor Michael Caine joined the platform’s Iconic Voice Marketplace, which lets brands licence authorised AI versions of famous voices.
Game studios have deployed it for interactive character experiences. Epic Games used ElevenLabs’ Flash v2.5 model to recreate the late James Earl Jones’ voice as a live, conversational Darth Vader in Fortnite, developed in close consultation with the Jones family.
Enterprises use ElevenAgents for customer service automation, content localisation, and multilingual support at scale. Verified clients include Washington Post, HarperCollins, Deutsche Telekom, Revolut, and the Ukrainian Government.
ElevenLabs Pricing: Is There a Free Tier?
Yes. ElevenLabs offers a free plan that allows up to 10,000 characters per month — sufficient for testing the tool and evaluating voice quality. Paid plans start at $22 per month for creators, scaling to custom enterprise pricing based on usage volume. Professional Voice Cloning, which produces the most faithful voice replicas, requires a paid plan and identity verification.
Is ElevenLabs Safe? The Controversy You Need to Know
This is where the picture becomes complicated — and where potential users should pay close attention.
In 2024, ElevenLabs’ technology was used to generate a deepfake robocall mimicking President Biden’s voice, telling New Hampshire primary voters to skip the election. The responsible account was eventually banned, but the incident illustrated how quickly the tool can be weaponised.
The legal pressure escalated significantly in 2026. Seven journalists and voice actors — including Pulitzer and Emmy winners — filed suit in Illinois, alleging ElevenLabs trained its models on their recordings without consent. A separate class action named ElevenLabs alongside Google, Meta, and Microsoft on similar grounds.
A March 2025 Consumer Reports assessment found that ElevenLabs and most AI voice platforms lacked meaningful safeguards against fraud, prompting US senators to formally demand answers. The AI Fraud Accountability Act of 2026 is now before the Senate.
ElevenLabs has responded with a partnership with deepfake detection firm Reality Defender, a public AI Speech Classifier tool, and a multi-layered content moderation framework. These are genuine steps — but independent assessors say enforcement remains more reactive than proactive.
On data privacy: raw voice recordings are retained for three years after your last interaction, and voice characteristics embedded in trained models may persist even after you delete your account.
Should You Use ElevenLabs?
For creators, podcasters, developers, and businesses needing multilingual audio at scale, ElevenLabs remains the most capable option on the market. Voice quality is best-in-class, the free tier is generous enough to properly evaluate the platform, and the language coverage — over 70 languages — is unmatched.
The caveats are real though. Think carefully before uploading your voice, read the data retention policy, and monitor how the pending litigation and incoming legislation develop. The technology is ahead of the governance — and that gap is still closing.
