TL;DR:
- Sydney-based generative AI platform, Leonardo.Ai, raises an impressive $31 million USD in funding.
- Notable investors, including Blackbird, Side Stage Ventures, Smash Capital, TIRTA Ventures, Gaorong Capital, and Samsung Next, demonstrate confidence in the platform.
- Leonardo.Ai has gained seven million users since its founding, generating over 700 million images.
- The platform recently launched an enterprise version with collaboration tools and private cloud hosting.
- Enterprise users can access APIs to build their own tech infrastructure.
- Targeted in creative industries, Leonardo.Ai enables users to save, edit, and create assets in the same style, with the ability to develop custom image generation models.
- Notable applications include storyboards for video production and gaming character mockups.
- CEO J.J. Fiasson highlights the platform’s emphasis on user control.
- The funding will support team expansion in sales, marketing, and engineering.
Main AI News:
In the ever-evolving landscape of generative AI startups, Sydney, Australia-based Leonardo.Ai has emerged as a promising player, having recently secured a substantial $31 million USD funding round. Notable investors such as Blackbird, Side Stage Ventures, Smash Capital, TIRTA Ventures, Gaorong Capital, and Samsung Next have demonstrated their confidence in the platform’s potential.
Established just last year, Leonardo.Ai has experienced remarkable growth, boasting a user base of seven million individuals since its inception. These users have collectively generated an astounding 700 million images to date. Moreover, the platform has expanded its offerings by introducing an enterprise version, complete with collaboration tools and the option for private cloud hosting. Enterprise clients also gain access to valuable APIs, empowering them to construct their own technological infrastructure utilizing Leonardo.Ai’s platform as a foundation, starting with its production API.
Leonardo.Ai is designed with creative professionals in mind, catering to industries such as gaming, advertising, fashion, and architecture. The platform facilitates the seamless saving, editing, and creation of multiple assets within the same stylistic realm, enabling efficient reuse. Furthermore, users have the capability to develop and train their own models for image generation.
The platform’s versatility extends to various applications, including the creation of storyboards for video production or the development of mockups for gaming characters. CEO and co-founder J.J. Fiasson’s fascination with generative AI began with the launch of Google Deep Dream and persisted through his tenure at his previous startup, Raini Studios, a gaming studio.
Reflecting on the inception of Leonardo.Ai, Fiasson states, “We started to think about the potential application of generative AI within the framework of content creation. It was still early days, in 2021, but we went down the rabbit hole playing with a lot of the generative AI tools that are out there, the open source ones that are out there, and I fell into that community and met a couple of passionate AI researchers who are now the co-founders of the company.“
Initially conceived to focus on game asset content creation, Leonardo.Ai has since expanded its horizons to cater to a wider array of scenarios. Fiasson elaborates, “There’s a lot of different vertical use cases of the platform, and we’ve built it in a way, and continue to build it in a way, that supports multiple use cases. Part of our strategy moving into the future is expanding the B2B aspects of our platform.”
What sets Leonardo.Ai apart from other generative AI art platforms like Adobe Firefly, BlueWillow, and Midjourney is the level of control it affords its users. For instance, its Live Canvas feature empowers users to input a text prompt and create a quick sketch of their desired outcome. As users sketch, Leonardo.Ai generates a photorealistic image in real-time, incorporating both textual and sketch-based prompts.
Fiasson emphasizes the importance of control, stating, “We think control means utility. If you don’t have as much control, you’re just making pretty pictures, so that’s key to us.”
With the infusion of $31 million in funding, Leonardo.Ai plans to expand its team, particularly in the areas of sales and marketing, to support the growth of its enterprise product. Additionally, the platform intends to bolster its engineering team, ensuring it continues to innovate and meet the evolving demands of its diverse user base. Leonardo AI’s journey is certainly one to watch as it charts a path toward shaping the future of generative AI art.
Conclusion:
Leonardo.Ai’s substantial funding round and rapid growth highlight the increasing demand for generative AI in creative industries. With its emphasis on user control and versatile applications, Leonardo.Ai is poised to reshape the generative AI art market and expand its presence, offering significant potential for innovation in content creation and beyond.
