Over recent years, creative platforms and marketplaces have become aware of the rich data they possess. This data can either be utilized to develop AI models or turned into a revenue avenue by licensing it to other AI laboratories.
Wirestock, initially a facilitator for photographers to sell their work on platforms like Shutterstock, chose to become a data provider in 2023. It now offers datasets of images, videos, design assets, and gaming and 3D content to AI labs. The company disclosed that its platform has attracted over 700,000 artists and designers completing various data collection tasks, akin to freelancers on sites like Fiverr.
Mikayel Khachatryan, Wirestock’s co-founder and CEO, stated that the company was open about this transition, allowing artists to opt out of the data supply business (the platform had more than 100,000 photographers by 2022). Although he didn’t specify the number of artists who shifted to providing data, he mentioned that “the majority” transitioned.
Khachatryan noted, “Initially, we sold our existing library, but custom requests for content and data quickly emerged, presenting new opportunities for creators, leading to the platform’s rapid growth.”
On Thursday, Wirestock announced securing $23 million in Series A funding to expand its data supply business. The funding was led by Nava Ventures, with contributions from SBVP (co-founded by Sheryl Sandberg), Formula VC, and I2BF Ventures.
Wirestock, currently providing multi-modal data to six leading foundation model creators, did not disclose their identities. Khachatryan mentioned an annual revenue run-rate of $40 million and $15 million already paid to contributors.
As part of its transformation, Wirestock retrained teams for detailed data annotation and labeling for AI labs. It also developed sales and enterprise teams to engage with hyperscalers and explore the collection of creative assets, especially in 3D modeling.
To recruit new contributors, Wirestock employs email marketing and referral programs. Photographers, videographers, and illustrators can apply on the website but must complete an unpaid quality check task before acceptance. The company uses a combination of AI and human reviews for all work evaluations.
The demand for data supply is currently high as AI labs strive to enhance their models. Companies like Surge, Scale AI, and Mercor have rapidly grown, spurred by varied dataset demands. New startups such as Micro1, Human Archive, and Human Native AI are also collaborating with top AI model developers.
Wirestock aims to provide data supporting creative tasks, like image and video generation, while also exploring areas like audio and music.
Freddie Martignetti of Nava Ventures highlighted that his fund sought a company innovating in data procurement and refinement, praising Wirestock’s understanding of the needs for multi-modal data crucial for creating human-like systems.
With a 60-member team, Wirestock will leverage the new funding for research, engineering, and product roles. It plans to develop enterprise software for dataset collaboration with AI labs.
This funding round brings the startup’s total capital raised to approximately $26 million.
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