Sesame
Category: Voice / Speech AI
Sesame AI offers advanced voice assistants, Maya and Miles, that engage in natural, emotionally aware conversations. Sesame was founded in 2023. The company is led by Brendan Iribe. Based in California, USA. Team size: 50-100. Total funding raised: $30M. Latest round: Series B, $250M, 2025-10, led by Sequoia Capital. Key investors include Andreessen Horowitz, Spark Capital, Matrix Partners.
- Founded
- 2023
- Headquarters
- California, USA
- Team size
- 50-100
- Total funding
- $30M
Value proposition
Provides human-like voice interactions with emotional intelligence, natural pauses, and contextual awareness
Products and solutions
Maya, Miles, Planned AI-powered glasses
Unique value
Intentionally incorporates subtle imperfections in speech output to create authentic and engaging dialogues.
Target customer
General consumers and businesses seeking natural and engaging voice interfaces
Industries served
Consumer electronics, AI technology, Healthcare, Education
Technology advantage
Utilizes a two-part transformer architecture and residual vector quantization (RVQ) for advanced audio encoding, achieving a unique 'voice presence'.
How they differentiate
Focuses on achieving a natural, emotionally nuanced voice experience with realistic pauses and intonation, unlike more robotic competitors.
Main competitors
Amazon (Alexa), Google Assistant, OpenAI (Voice Mode)
Key partnerships
Andreessen Horowitz, Spark Capital, Matrix Partners
Notable customers
Early enterprise pilot customers in tech and healthcare sectors
Major milestones
Release of the base AI model powering Maya Demonstrations of voice companions Maya and Miles Announced plans for AI-powered glasses
Growth metrics
Viral adoption of the Maya assistant and strong positive media attention
Market positioning
Positioned as a leader in creating emotionally intelligent voice assistants.
Geographic focus
Primarily focused on the U.S. market with plans to support over 20 languages.
Patents and IP
Not explicitly mentioned; key model components are open-sourced under the Apache 2.0 license.
About Brendan Iribe
Brendan Iribe is a prominent entrepreneur and executive in the tech industry, best known for co-founding Oculus VR and serving as its CEO, which led to its acquisition by Facebook (now Meta). He also co-founded and led Scaleform, a UI technology provider for video games. Currently, he is the co-founder and CEO of Sesame AI, a company focused on developing advanced, emotionally aware voice assistants.
Official website: https://www.sesame.com