London-based artificial intelligence creative studio Wonder Studios has raised $12 million in seed funding to scale production amid a push to bring AI-generated content into the entertainment industry.
The round was led by Atomico, along with existing investors LocalGlobe and Blackbird, and builds on Wonder’s initial investment, which included executives from ElevenLabs, Google DeepMind and OpenAI.
Wonder will use the new funds to double its engineering team and accelerate its push into IP ownership and original content production. The team recently created an artificial intelligence music video for Lewis Capaldi’s “Something in the Heavens”, created with DeepMind, YouTube and Universal Music Group. Wonder also released her first original production, “Beyond the loop” anthology series.
Wonder is working on several commercial and original projects coming out next year, including an upcoming documentary with Campfire Studios, the production company behind the Netflix documentaries “The Menendez Brothers” and “America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders.” Campfire CEO Ross Dinerstein is an investor in the startup.
The push for IP ownership comes amid a wave of lawsuits from Hollywood producers targeting artificial intelligence companies — both for training models on their content and for generating results with copyrighted characters. Disney and Universal Studios, for example, have sued Chinese company MiniMax, as well as AI image maker Midjourney.
Wonder’s rise also comes as Netflix is going “all in” on genetic AI as a way to make creatives more effective at telling stories.
Artificial intelligence remains a divisive issue in entertainment, with artists concerned that the tools powered by LLMs, who have often been trained in their work without consent, could threaten their livelihoods. OpenAI’s Sora 2 has received particular criticism reproduction of actors’ likenesses without notice or consent.
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Wonder positions itself as “Hollywood without borders,” helping to make AI storytelling tools accessible to all creators. The startup’s app acts as a hub that connects its community of creators with career opportunities, partners and resources, according to the company.
“The next decade will define what creativity looks like in the age of artificial intelligence,” said Justin Hackney, chief commercial officer and co-founder of Wonder Studios. “Our mission is to ensure that this future belongs to storytellers. By partnering with leading studios, industry pioneers and grassroots filmmakers, we’re already creating a bridge where technology and art grow together.”
Clarification: An earlier headline misstated OpenAI’s involvement with Wonder Studios.
