Suno has raised $400 million in Series D funding at a post-money valuation of $5.4 billion, putting the AI music startup in the unusual position of being both heavily sued and heavily funded. Bond Capital led the round, with IVP, Forerunner, Union Square Ventures, Alkeon and Quiet joining alongside returning investors.
The speed is the point. Suno was valued at $2.45 billion after a $250 million round last November; about half a year later, that number has more than doubled. The company said it had passed 2 million paid subscribers by February and was tracking toward roughly $300 million in annualized revenue, with a staff of about 200.
What Suno still needs is legitimacy from the music industry. Warner Music settled with the company last November and signed a licensing partnership, but Universal Music and Sony Music remain in litigation, while rightsholders in Denmark and Germany have also brought claims. Universal and Sony have sought to add more than 61,000 copyrighted recordings to the case.
The new money says investors are betting that AI music will be negotiated into the industry rather than shut out of it. Suno wants to turn music creation from a professional craft into something millions of casual users can try, but the price of that future may be licensing deals and a long legal bill.
Sources: Variety, Music Business Worldwide, Bloomberg, CocoLoop.