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CEO and co-founder Mikey Shulman said around 10m people have made music using the web-based platform since it was first launched eight months ago.
Suno, the start-up that uses generative AI to help anyone make music, has raised $125m in a funding round backed by Lightspeed Venture Partners.
Based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Suno has developed an AI-powered web application that accepts text prompts from users to generate realistic music with or without vocals.
“We started Suno to build a future where anyone can make music. To help people rediscover the joy of play and exploration we had as kids,” CEO and co-founder Mikey Shulman wrote in a post yesterday (21 May).
“Technology is a means to that end, and today’s state-of-the-art creates the potential for a flourishing of new sounds, new styles and new artists in a way we’ve always dreamt about.”
Suno released its first product eight months ago, and since then, Shulman said, around 10m people have made music using the platform.
“While Grammy-winning artists use Suno, our core user base consists of everyday people making music – often for the first time,” Shulman said.
“We’ve seen producers crate digging, friends exchanging memes and streamers co-creating songs with stadium-sized audiences. We’ve helped an artist who lost his voice bring his lyrics back to life again after decades on the sidelines.”
Other than Lightspeed Venture Partners, investors in the latest round included Nat Friedman, Daniel Gross, Matrix and Founder Collective.
Shulman said some of Suno’s advisers include 3LAU, Aaron Levie, Alexandr Wang, Amjad Masad, Andrej Karpathy, Aravind Srinivas, Brendan Iribe, Flosstradamus, Fred Ehrsam, Guillermo Rauch and Shane Mac.
“We will use this funding to accelerate product development and grow our team of music makers, music lovers and technologists,” he said. “Our community of musicians deserves the very best tools, and building the very best tools requires the very best talent – not just technological expertise, but a genuine love of music.”
Suno, which hasn’t disclosed the dataset it used to train its AI, was one of 700 companies Sony Music Group wrote to last week, warning them against using its music – which includes the works of Harry Styles, Beyoncé and Adele – to train, develop and commercialise AI systems.
“Evolutions in technology have frequently shifted the course of creative industries. AI will likely continue that long-standing trend,” Sony wrote last week. “However, that innovation must ensure that songwriters’ and recording artists’ rights, including copyrights, are respected.”
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