Uncharted Labs
Uncharted Labs operates Udio, an AI music generation platform founded in 2024 by former Google DeepMind researchers, serving artists, songwriters, and rights holders through licensed partnerships with major labels.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Uncharted Labs does
Uncharted Labs, Inc. is a New York-based AI startup operating the Udio AI music generation platform. Founded in 2024 by three former Google DeepMind researchers who departed Google citing slow product translation and bureaucratic friction following the DeepMind merger, the company has built a proprietary AI system capable of generating music from text and audio prompts. The company's commercial trajectory has been defined by legal conflict with the recorded music industry: Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group filed copyright actions over training data, which the company resolved in late 2025 through licensing settlements covering both recorded music and publishing assets, with a fully licensed AI music platform planned for 2026.
The business model is being repositioned around licensing and royalties. Rather than operating solely as a standalone consumer-facing generator, Uncharted Labs is transitioning into a platform that delivers AI-driven music creation services backed by formal rights-holder agreements with major labels. Revenue mechanics going forward will be governed by those licensing terms, with the company serving artists, songwriters, and music industry stakeholders who need a legally cleared path to AI-generated music. The company has raised $8.5 million toward a $10 million funding target, led by Andreessen Horowitz, and operates with a small team of 1-10 employees.
Uncharted Labs is distinct from Uncharted Lab (unchartedlab.co), a Malaysian-registered innovation consultancy with offices in Berlin and Kuala Lumpur that operates in design and innovation services. The data on the consultancy (footprint metrics, client sectors, geographies) should not be conflated with the AI startup, which is a separate legal entity based in the United States.
Uncharted Labs firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Uncharted Labs
- Legal name
- Uncharted Labs, Inc.
- Website
- https://unchartedlab.co
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Uncharted Labs operates Udio, an AI music generation platform founded in 2024 by former Google DeepMind researchers, serving artists, songwriters, and rights holders through licensed partnerships with major labels.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Uncharted Labs industry classification
Industry- Product category
- AI Music Generation
- NAICS
- Software Publishers (5132), Sound Recording Industries (5122)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- AI Music Creation & Assistive Tools (Generation, Separation, Mastering) (MPAIAIAG)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Mobile Music Creation Apps (Beatmaking, Songwriting, Practice) (MPAIAIAC)
Keywords
Where Uncharted Labs is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Uncharted Labs business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel
Revenue model
- AI Music Platform Licensing: The company operates Udio, an AI music generator platform. Following settlements with major labels (UMG, WMG), the company is launching a licensed AI music platform in 2026, generating revenue through AI-driven music creation services with proper licensing agreements for recorded music and publishing assets.
Uncharted Labs product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Uncharted Labs Inc. operates Udio, an AI music generation platform that creates music using artificial intelligence. Following legal settlements with Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group, the company is launching a licensed AI music platform in 2026, providing AI-driven music creation services with licensing agreements for recorded music and publishing assets. The platform is built by former Google DeepMind researchers based in New York.
Product overview
Uncharted Labs Inc. is an AI startup based in New York, founded by former Google DeepMind researchers. The company's primary product is Udio, an AI music generation platform. According to news sources, the company has been involved in significant legal disputes with major music labels including Universal Music Group and has recently settled litigation, with plans to launch a licensed AI music platform. Warner Music Group has also signed an AI development deal with Udio. The company operates primarily in the AI music generation space, distinct from the separate Uncharted Lab (unchartedlab.co) which is an innovation consultancy.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Udio: AI music generation platform developed by Uncharted Labs Inc.
Products and services
- Udio Udio is an AI music generator platform developed by Uncharted Labs Inc. that enables users to create music through artificial intelligence. Following litigation settlements with Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group, the company plans to launch a licensed version of the platform in 2026 with proper rights holder agreements.
Quantifiable outcome
- Settled legal disputes with Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group, with both major labels agreeing to drop litigation and support licensed AI music platform launch.
Companies that use Uncharted Labs
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Uncharted Labs technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Uncharted Labs partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Warner Music Group (WMG)coreWarner Music Group signed an AI development deal with Udio (Uncharted Labs) that resolves legal disputes and establishes a framework for AI-driven music creation services. The Udio deal will launch a licensed AI music platform in 2026, setting a template for other music rights holders to adopt AI technologies responsibly.
- Universal Music Group (UMG)coreUniversal Music Group settled legal disputes with Uncharted Labs (Udio) and plans to launch a new licensed platform in 2026. The deal includes licensing agreements for both recorded music and publishing assets, with UMG dropping litigation against Udio. Other major labels are expected to follow UMG's lead.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Uncharted Labs competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Suno: Suno is a leading AI music generation platform that allows users to create full songs from text prompts. It is the most direct head-to-head competitor to Udio in the consumer AI music creation space, with both platforms facing similar major-label copyright disputes.
- Stability AI: Stability AI develops Stable Audio, an AI music generation model, and shares the same regulatory and rights-holder headwinds as Uncharted Labs. It is a direct competitor with comparable generative audio technology and a similar legal-dispute profile with major labels.
- Boomy: Boomy is an AI music creation platform that enables users to generate and distribute original songs, and was also targeted in early copyright lawsuits by major labels. It targets the same prosumer and amateur creator segment as Udio.
- Soundraw: Soundraw is an AI music generation platform focused on customizable, royalty-free music creation for content creators. It competes directly with Udio in AI-driven music generation, with overlapping use cases around creator-facing music tooling.
- Loudly: Loudly offers an AI-powered music generation and curation platform aimed at content creators and brands. It competes with Udio in the AI music creation space, particularly for social media and video use cases.
- AIVA: AIVA is an AI music composition assistant that generates emotional soundtrack music for films, games, and ads. It is a direct competitor in AI music generation, particularly in the composition-assistive use case adjacent to Udio's generative capabilities.
- Splash Music: Splash Music is an AI music generation platform targeting social media creators and musicians. It is a direct competitor to Udio in the consumer AI music creation space, with comparable prompt-to-song functionality.
Broad incumbents
- Adobe: Adobe integrates AI audio and music capabilities into its Creative Cloud suite (including Adobe Express and Premiere audio features). It is a broad incumbent with overlapping creator-facing audio tooling, though it does not focus exclusively on generative AI music.
- Shutterstock (Amper Music): Shutterstock acquired Amper Music, an AI music composition platform, and now offers AI music generation tools integrated into its stock media ecosystem. It is a broad incumbent with comparable AI music generation capabilities serving content creators.
Emerging players
- MusicFX (Google): Google's MusicFX is an experimental AI music generation tool built on DeepMind's MusicLM technology. It is an emerging player in the same category as Udio and is especially notable because Uncharted Labs' founders originated from Google DeepMind.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
Uncharted Labs social profiles
Digital presenceUncharted Labs financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Uncharted Labs leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Uncharted Labs funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Uncharted Labs M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Uncharted Labs
What does Uncharted Labs do?
Uncharted Labs Inc. operates Udio, an AI music generation platform that creates music using artificial intelligence. Following legal settlements with Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group, the company is launching a licensed AI music platform in 2026, providing AI-driven music creation services with licensing agreements for recorded music and publishing assets. The platform is built by former Google DeepMind researchers based in New York.
Is Uncharted Labs a public or private company?
Uncharted Labs is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Uncharted Labs founded?
Uncharted Labs was founded in 2017. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Uncharted Labs based?
Uncharted Labs is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Uncharted Labs make money?
One revenue line is on record: AI Music Platform Licensing.
Who are Uncharted Labs's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Suno, Stability AI, Boomy, Soundraw, Loudly, AIVA and Splash Music. Broad incumbents are Adobe and Shutterstock (Amper Music). MusicFX (Google) is listed as an emerging player.
Does Uncharted Labs have an API?
No public API is recorded for Uncharted Labs.
What industry is Uncharted Labs in?
Uncharted Labs's product category is AI Music Generation. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAIAIAG, AI Music Creation & Assistive Tools (Generation, Separation, Mastering), with a secondary code of MPAIAIAC, Mobile Music Creation Apps (Beatmaking, Songwriting, Practice). Its NAICS code is 5132 and its SIC code is 7372.