Veritonic Raises Funding from Greycroft, Lerer Hippeau & Audible

Veritonic has announced the successful completion of a $3.2 million Series A funding round. This investment was spearheaded by Greycroft, with additional participation from Lerer Hippeau and Audible, the audiobook platform owned by Amazon.

According to CEO Scott Simonelli, who established the New York-based company alongside COO Andrew Eisner and CTO Kevin Marshall, the company’s ambition is to define a new field known as “audio intelligence.” This involves the assessment and forecasting of the impact of any audio content or advertising material.

The company’s initial focus is on the marketing sector. Its primary product, Creative Measurement, evaluates audio advertisements, providing marketers with performance scores relative to comparable content and pinpointing the most impactful segments of the audio. Furthermore, Veritonic is introducing Competitive Intelligence, a tool designed to reveal competitor advertising expenditures and deliver notifications upon the release of new competitor ads.

Simonelli explained that traditional audio measurement methods, such as relying on audience panels of limited size, are inadequate given the rapid expansion of the audio market.

Veritonic differentiates itself by having analyzed a vast library of audio files. This analysis correlates content characteristics with audience responses, enabling the prediction of reactions to new audio pieces. Simonelli stated that while gathering additional human response data would enhance its capabilities, the company can already offer immediate effectiveness predictions for ads or campaigns.

Simonelli also highlighted that Veritonic has dedicated the past five years to developing technology specifically designed to address the unique challenges of gauging audio effectiveness—particularly the temporal nature of audio and its need for memorability.

“We are able to examine the sonic characteristics of a piece and forecast and assess how an individual will react to it,” he explained.

The overarching objective, he continued, is to establish a definitive standard for audio advertising. This will involve collaboration with diverse stakeholders throughout the industry. He pointed to other audio investments within Greycroft’s portfolio, such as Wondery and Podsights, noting that “Veritonic enhances the value of each of these audio investments.”

Veritonic has already achieved significant progress toward this goal, securing partnerships with companies like Pandora, SiriusXM, and NPR, and serving brand clients including Pepsi, Visa, and Subway. The company had previously received backing from Newark Venture Partners, founded by Don Katz, the original founder of Audible.

Alan Patricof of Greycroft commented, “We are thrilled to support Veritonic’s ongoing development and success. I have a strong personal belief in the potential of voice technology, and the Veritonic team possesses a deep understanding of how to leverage audio to foster recall, engagement, and brand recognition—all crucial elements in today’s competitive market.”

Simonelli added that the new funding will be allocated to expanding the company’s data science and sales teams. Looking ahead, he expressed interest in extending the analysis to non-advertising audio content, citing Audible’s investment as an opportunity to potentially analyze every audiobook available.