ElevenLabs vs Scale AI: Founders, CEOs and History
ElevenLabs was founded in 2022 by Mati Staniszewski, Piotr Dabkowski and is led by Mati Staniszewski. Scale AI was founded in 2016 by Alexandr Wang, Lucy Guo and is led by Francis deSouza.
Company facts
ElevenLabs
- Founded
- 2022
- Headquarters
- London, United Kingdom & New York City, New York, United States
- Current CEO
- Mati Staniszewski
- Employees
- 800
Scale AI
- Founded
- 2016
- Headquarters
- San Francisco, California, United States
- Current CEO
- Francis deSouza
- Employees
- 1,200
Founders
ElevenLabs
Mati Staniszewski
Mati Staniszewski is the Polish-born co-founder and CEO of ElevenLabs. He grew up near Warsaw, studied mathematics at Imperial College London and worked at Palantir before starting ElevenLabs with school friend Piotr Dabkowski in 2022.
Piotr Dabkowski
Piotr Dabkowski is co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of ElevenLabs. He studied at the University of Cambridge, worked as a machine learning engineer at Google and leads the research behind ElevenLabs' speech, transcription and music models. Piotr Dabkow…
Scale AI
Alexandr Wang
Alexandr Wang co-founded Scale AI in 2016 and was its CEO until June 2025. He led the move from self-driving data into language-model training data and U.S. defense work, and Forbes named him the youngest self-made billionaire in 2022.
Lucy Guo
Lucy Guo co-founded Scale AI with Alexandr Wang in 2016 and led early product and design work. She left in 2018 and later founded the venture firm Backend Capital and the creator platform Passes. Lucy Guo was born in 1994. Guo left Scale AI in 2018.
CEOs and their tenures
ElevenLabs
- Mati Staniszewski2022–present
Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer
As Co-Founder and CEO, he rapidly scaled the company from a tiny startup into a $1.1 billion unicorn in less than two years, securing massive funding from Andreessen Horowitz.
Source - Piotr Dabkowski2022–present
Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer
As Co-Founder and CTO, he leveraged his previous experience as a Google machine learning engineer to build the absolute most realistic AI voice generator on the market.
Source
Scale AI
- Alexandr Wang2016–2025
Co-Founder, former CEO and Chairman
Co-founded Scale and ran it until June 2025, when he joined Meta; remains chairman of the board.
Source - Jason Droege2025–2026
Interim Chief Executive Officer
Former chief strategy officer and Uber Eats founder who led Scale through the post-Meta-deal restructuring.
Source - Francis deSouza2026–present
Chief Executive Officer
Former Illumina CEO and Google Cloud COO, appointed CEO effective August 10, 2026 to grow the applications business.
Source
Timeline: ElevenLabs and Scale AI side by side
2016Scale AI
Scale AI founded
Alexandr Wang and Lucy Guo founded Scale in Y Combinator's S16 batch.
2018Scale AI
Lucy Guo departs
Co-founder Lucy Guo left the company.
2019Scale AI
Series C and unicorn status
Founders Fund led a $100 million round valuing Scale above $1 billion.
2021Scale AI
Series E at $7.3 billion
Scale raised $325 million at a $7.3 billion valuation.
2022ElevenLabs
ElevenLabs founded
Mati Staniszewski and Piotr Dabkowski start the company to build expressive AI voice and dubbing.
2023ElevenLabs
Public beta and $19M Series A
Beta launches in January; Series A co-led by Nat Friedman, Daniel Gross and Andreessen Horowitz follows in June.
2024ElevenLabs
$80M Series B at $1.1B valuation
January 2024 round makes ElevenLabs a unicorn; the company later launches its Conversational AI agent platform and Reader app.
2024Scale AI
Series F at $13.8 billion
Accel led a $1 billion round with Nvidia, Amazon and Meta participating.
2025ElevenLabs
$180M Series C at $3.3B; ARR passes $330M
January 2025 round co-led by a16z and ICONIQ; Eleven v3 and Eleven Music launch during the year.
2025Scale AI
Meta invests $14.3 billion
Meta took 49% at a valuation above $29 billion; Wang joined Meta and Jason Droege became interim CEO.
2025Scale AI
Layoffs
Scale cut 200 full-time staff and 500 contractors in July.
2026ElevenLabs
$500M Series D at $11B
Sequoia Capital leads the February 2026 round; ARR passes $500 million in April.
2026ElevenLabs
$300M employee tender at $22B
September 30, 2026 tender co-led by Wellington and T. Rowe Price doubles the Series D valuation.
2026Scale AI
Francis deSouza becomes CEO
The former Illumina chief took over on August 10, 2026.
Acquisitions
Scale AI
- ICG Solutions2026Undisclosed
- SiaSearch2021Undisclosed
- Helia2020Undisclosed
Questions about ElevenLabs vs Scale AI
Who is the CEO of ElevenLabs and Scale AI, Inc.?
ElevenLabs is led by Mati Staniszewski and Scale AI, Inc. is led by Francis deSouza. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was ElevenLabs founded vs Scale AI, Inc.?
Scale AI, Inc. was founded in 2016 — 6 years before ElevenLabs, which was founded in 2022. Scale AI, Inc.'s longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger ElevenLabs.
How many employees does ElevenLabs have compared to Scale AI, Inc.?
ElevenLabs employs approximately 800 people, while Scale AI, Inc. employs approximately 1,200. Scale AI, Inc. has the larger workforce at 1,200 employees, compared to ElevenLabs's 800. A higher headcount does not necessarily imply greater efficiency — it often reflects differences in business model (e.g., manufacturing vs. software).
Where are ElevenLabs and Scale AI, Inc. headquartered?
Both ElevenLabs and Scale AI, Inc. are headquartered in United States. Their local rules and tax obligations may still differ.
Who founded ElevenLabs and Scale AI, Inc.?
ElevenLabs was founded by Mati Staniszewski, Piotr Dabkowski. Scale AI, Inc. was founded by Alexandr Wang, Lucy Guo.
Which company has a longer operating history — ElevenLabs or Scale AI, Inc.?
Scale AI, Inc. has been operating for approximately 10 years, making it the more established of the two companies. ElevenLabs has been in operation for around 4 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the ElevenLabs vs Scale AI overview