UK generative AI firm Stability AI has raised $80 million in funding, according to sources reported by The Wall Street Journal.

The firm’s platform, Stable Diffusion, allows users to generate audio and video from text prompts.

Developed by Germany’s Ludwig Maximilian University in partnership with the AI startup Runway, it remains one of the industry's most used image-generation platforms.

The firm’s technology has been applied to music, 3D modelling, and biomedical technology. The firm offers a subscription plan for commercial use of its platform at a cost of roughly £17 per month. The tool has almost 150 million downloads.

Stability AI’s business model involves providing updates to the open-source AI model which powers its platform and provides the services which surround it.

Investors in the round included Coatue Management, Lightspeed Venture Partners, angel investor Prem Akkaraju, former Facebook exec Sean Parker, and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt.

As part of the deal, Stability AI’s founders have agreed to forgive $100 million in debt, and for the start-up to be released from $300 million in future obligations, mainly to cloud providers.

Parker is set to join the firm’s board of directors while Prem Akkaraju will now join the firm as CEO.

In January 2023, the firm was hit by a lawsuit from Getty Images, which alleged that the start-up had been violating copyright law when using its database to train its AI models.

“Stability AI is the backbone of the visual AI ecosystem,” said Akkaraju. “The company’s world-class team, breakthrough models and unique developer network attracted me to take on the CEO role

“We will continue to release the most cutting-edge open models for the community while meeting the overwhelming demand for AI solutions from large-scale corporations.”

He added: “Additionally, Stability AI is now in an ideal position to spearhead the real convergence of generative AI and studio content.”

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