German media giant Bertelsmann has struck a deal with AI firm ElevenLabs to use its platforms and tools to help drive innovation and improve production processes across a range of Bertelsmann’s businesses.
The goal is for the companies to work together to find ways for London-based ElevenLabs tools to help Bertelsmann create new products as well as accelerating and streamlining production, marketing and distribution of existing properties.
Bertelsmann is one of Europe’s biggest media conglomerates, home to RTL Group (which includes top TV channels in Germany, the Netherlands, France, Hungary and Luxembourg and production giant Fremantle), the world’s largest book publisher, Penguin Random House, music giant BMG, plus marketing, education and investment arms.
The partners envision using ElevenLabs tools to deliver “lifelike voice and sound generation” and audio tools to “support production and pre-production” for Bertelsmann units, per ElevenLabs. The pitch is that the AI tools will help various Bertelsmann units find ways to expand their reach and productivity. The hope is that potential for accelerated production will spark creativity and, eventually, create compelling new products.
“With Bertelsmann’s Tech & Data Alliance and its recently founded AI Hub we have been at the forefront of applying new technologies across our businesses and building partnerships to accelerate the adoption of GenAI solutions in our businesses. ElevenLabs’ sophisticated AI solutions are cutting edge, ensuring high quality and multi-language audio experiences,” said Rhys Nölke, chief data officer for Bertelsmann.
ElevenLabs has focused on audio production and building high-quality AI models based on licensed source material. ElevenLabs has made a point of announcing its licensing pacts with notable figures in media and entertainment such as the estates of Judy Garland, Burt Reynolds, James Dean and Jerry Garcia. In September, ElevenLabs inked a licensing deal with notable health and wellness expert Deepak Chopra. The deal makes Chopra’s disctinctive voice available as a audio book reader for users of ElevenLabs data. The two have also worked together on the “Digital Deepak” AI chatbot that was trained in Chopak’s more than 90 books and numerous public appearances in order to allow users to ask the chatbot questions and get responses delivered back in Chopra’s synthetic voice.
“Together with Bertelsmann, we want to push what’s possible in storytelling,” said Mati Staniszewski, CEO of ElevenLabs. “Whether it’s crafting richer audio, speeding up production, or making content accessible across languages, our work together is about finding new ways to bring creators and their audiences closer.”
The partners noted that 36 units with the vast Bertelsmann group already use ElevenLabs AI tools in some form.
“The partnership reflects a shared goal: using AI to help creators do what they do best, not to replace them,” ElevenLabs said.
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