HeyGen, an AI video business that specializes in realistic avatar creation, raised $500 million in funding and secured $60 million in a recent funding round. Benchmark led this round, with additional funding from Bond Capital, Thrive Capital, and Conviction. After this round, Victor Lazarte, a partner at Benchmark, will also join HeyGen's board. Since its 2020 founding, the company has raised $74 million in capital.
HeyGen is committed to making the process of creating videos with generative AI as easy and affordable as possible. Thanks to its technology, users can create avatars that can speak in multiple languages and carry on voice conversations. Businesses are increasingly interested in this capability for applications like advertising campaigns and training videos, despite growing concerns about the possibility of producing convincing deepfakes.
HeyGen and McDonald's recently collaborated on a campaign that let users send video greetings in their home languages for their grandmothers to promote the Grandma McFlurry dessert. Joshua Xu, CEO of HeyGen, highlights the company's goal of removing the requirement for a camera in order to increase accessibility to visual storytelling.
HeyGen has over 40,000 paying customers and generates over $35 million in income annually using OpenAI and other technologies for text and speech production. The company turned a profit in 2023's second quarter.
But HeyGen has obstacles to overcome, such as criticism for its early ties to China in the context of escalating tensions between the United States and China over national security and technology. In spite of this, HeyGen's co-founder and CEO, Xu, stands up for his cultural background and the company's morality in the face of shifting political and technological environments.