Skip to main content

icnlive

Khaled Darwish

Writer,

icn.live

Follow

For more than eleven years, Khaled Darwish has tracked the evolution of finance, regulation, and digital currencies for outlets such as Al Arabiya Business. Khaled completed postgraduate studies in Journalism and International Communication. His articles connect institutional strategies with the world of retail. Outdoor activities are his favorites.
ElevenLabs has announced its new investors

ElevenLabs has announced its new investors after closing a $500 million Series D funding round. The voice AI startup welcomes BlackRock, Wellington, D.E. Shaw, and Schroders as institutional backers. Enterprise giants like NVIDIA and Santander joined the round through their corporate strategic venture arms. Hollywood stars Jamie Foxx, Eva Longoria, and Squid Game creator Hwang Dong-hyuk also added their names. For readers tracking AI investments, this round signals strong confidence in conversational AI platform growth.

Institutional backing reaches a new high

BlackRock and Wellington bring deep capital expertise to a fast-growing voice AI startup ecosystem. The company ended 2025 with $350 million in annual recurring revenue from enterprise clients. By April 2026, ElevenLabs had surpassed $500 million in annual recurring revenue across its product lines. Rob Mazzoni from Wellington Management said voice AI will become foundational for global business communication. His firm sees ElevenLabs leading the category as enterprises adopt human-like AI agents at scale.

Many enterprise clients now back the company financially through their corporate strategic investment arms. NVIDIA, Salesforce, KPN, and Deutsche Telekom rely on the platform for customer interactions daily. ElevenLabs has announced its new investors right after expanding deals with these enterprise customers. Deutsche Telekom uses the platform to power support agents and produce marketing videos for customers. The German telecom giant invested through T.Capital, its strategic investment arm, during the latest round. Karine Peters from T. Capital said voice carries the highest stakes in any customer interaction channel.

Why has ElevenLabs announced its new investors at this moment

You see strong momentum because enterprises now deploy enterprise AI agents across multiple business functions. Customer support, sales, hiring, and marketing operations all benefit from AI voice technology platforms. From my standpoint, this third Series D close shows institutional belief in conversational AI economics. The voice AI startup grew from $350 million ARR to over $500 million in four months. Such rapid growth attracts capital because enterprise contracts produce stable recurring income for the platform.

ElevenLabs has announced its new investors alongside a fresh push into retail and creative communities. Eva Longoria, an actor and producer, joined the round as part of a creative talent group. More than 30 actors, musicians, athletes, and entertainment executives invested for the first time. Longoria said her investment reflects support for a company building tools with creatives in mind. Matthew McConaughey, an existing investor, keeps backing the AI voice technology platform with new capital.

ANOTHER MUST-READ ON ICN.LIVE: China Blocks Meta Manus Acquisition in Major US-China Tech War Move

What comes next for the voice AI startup

Robinhood Ventures opens retail access for everyday users to own a stake in the company. ElevenLabs has announced its new investors at a time when enterprise AI agents shape business communication. Your business benefits when AI sounds natural across phone calls, video content, and chat windows. The platform now serves 530 employees across more than 50 countries around the world. Mati Staniszewski, the co-founder, said systems sounding robotic will not gain widespread customer trust. Funding will support new tools combining image, video, and audio generation for marketing teams. Plans include voice agents handling email, chat, and live calls across many client industries. Your decision to back conversational AI platforms now will pay off as adoption grows. The company builds toward natural human-like communication for every business audience worldwide each day.

UAE banking sector assets

Fresh CBUAE data shows a banking system with rising liquidity, larger deposits, and stronger credit activity. Total bank assets reached AED5.47 trillion by late February, adding further weight to recent expansion. Credit also moved upward during the month, with private sector borrowing providing the clearest support. Deposit growth stayed broad, with residents and non-residents both adding fresh balances. Those changes matter because funding, lending, and liquidity often move together during stronger banking periods.

Money supply measures also pointed upward across the main aggregates during February 2026. The narrow gauge, M1, rose as cash outside banks and transaction deposits both increased. The broader gauge, M2, also climbed after a strong rise in quasi-monetary balances. Corporate balances gave the largest support within that broader measure during the month. Household balances also rose strongly, showing firmer savings and demand deposit activity. Deposits from government-related entities added support, while financial corporations also recorded notable gains. M3 increased too, even with a drop in government sector deposits during February.

That mix suggests liquidity stayed healthy even while one public deposit category moved lower. For readers tracking the UAE money supply, February delivered another sign of broad financial expansion. The rise in the monetary base added another positive signal for underlying banking conditions. Reserve balances, currency issuance, and overnight account balances all moved upward during the month. A decline in bills and Islamic certificates softened overall growth, yet did not reverse direction.

UAE banking sector assets gain support from liquidity and deposits

The balance sheet story looked stronger once lending figures entered the picture. Total gross credit reached AED2.63 trillion by the end of February, extending January’s advance. Most of that increase came from domestic credit, which expanded by AED20.6 billion. Private sector borrowing gave the largest boost, showing continued demand from companies and business activity. Lending to government-related entities also increased, though at a smaller pace overall. Credit to the government sector fell again, trimming part of the wider domestic increase. Even so, gross credit growth stayed positive because private demand outweighed the public sector decline.

Deposit figures reinforced the same picture across the funding side of bank balance sheets. Total bank deposits reached AED3.40 trillion by late February, posting a solid monthly increase. Resident balances accounted for most of that move, while overseas balances also rose nicely. Within resident funds, private sector deposits made the largest contribution by a wide margin. Government-related entities and other financial corporations also added support through moderate monthly increases. Government sector balances moved lower, though those declines failed to offset broader private inflows. From my standpoint, this pattern points to confidence from firms, households, and institutional depositors.

These details matter because rising deposits often give banks more room to support lending needs. They also show where activity sits inside the system, with private money playing a larger role. CBUAE data for February, therefore, paints a clear and practical picture for readers. UAE banking sector assets rose alongside stronger funding, healthier liquidity, and broader private participation. The combined increase in UAE money supply, private sector deposits, and monetary base UAE measures supports that view. With gross credit growth still led by private borrowers, February ended with solid momentum across UAE banks.

Abu Dhabi school compliance rules

Abu Dhabi school compliance rules now give private schools a clear path for online class accountability. The new ADEK policy explains which mistakes bring notices, warnings, fines, or deeper reviews. Schools must track attendance, follow approved timetables, and keep records ready for inspection. Leaders also need strong student wellbeing checks and steady live teaching rules each school day.

Abu Dhabi school compliance rules now define how private schools must handle online learning failures. ADEK created three penalty levels, which help schools understand each breach and its likely outcome. The first level targets simple administrative mistakes with limited impact on students or lessons. Examples include missing online class attendance uploads, delayed lesson plans, or first timetable departures. In those cases, ADEK sends a written notice to the distance learning coordinator.
The school then gets forty-eight hours to fix the issue and update records. ADEK also places the breach inside the school’s compliance file for future reference.

This step shows schools where small gaps begin before larger failures affect learning quality

For parents, the message looks direct: schools must treat remote education like classroom instruction. From my standpoint, this structure gives school leaders fewer excuses for weak daily oversight. ADEK private schools now face a system built around fast correction, not instant severe punishment. That approach supports distance learning policy goals while keeping regulators closely involved in everyday compliance.

The second level covers repeated breaches or first failures with direct impact on students. ADEK said missing live interaction during lessons falls into this more serious category. A school also risks action when staff ignore student well-being checks during remote learning days. Confirmed parent complaints, backed by inspections, also move a case into stronger enforcement. At this stage, ADEK sends a formal warning letter within three school days.


ANOTHER MUST-WATCH ON ICN

School leaders must attend a meeting with the principal within five working days. Officials also impose financial penalties based on the authority’s approved fee schedule. Afterward, ADEK carries out a follow-up inspection within ten school days. This level matters because repeated weak practice often signals wider leadership or staffing problems. Online class attendance records also become more important when schools face a second-level review. Inspectors look for proof showing lessons happened, engagement existed, and support reached struggling students.

The focus moves beyond paperwork and into the real quality of daily teaching. For families, these checks offer stronger protection when online learning standards start slipping. Live teaching rules matter here because student contact shapes attention, understanding, and emotional support.

Why second-level violations matter for school quality

The third level covers critical failures with serious risk for students or school credibility. A school reaches this stage after ongoing non-compliance following an earlier formal warning. ADEK also treats data falsification as a major breach under this enforcement structure. Student safety incidents linked to negligence also trigger the strongest response from regulators. Another major violation appears when schools stop live teaching for three straight days. Such action, without ADEK approval, shows a breakdown in planning and leadership control.

This final tier signals possible licence review, which raises pressure on owners and principals. Distance learning policy enforcement now looks tougher because remote learning still affects student outcomes. Schools need working systems for attendance, lesson delivery, and student well-being checks every day. They also need trained staff who understand reporting duties and parent communication standards. ADEK private schools should now review remote learning plans before another violation appears.

For parents, these rules offer a clearer picture of what schools must deliver. For schools, the lesson stays simple: strong systems prevent small errors from becoming major sanctions. Abu Dhabi school compliance rules now place online education under closer and more practical supervision.