Ex-OpenAI Researcher’s AI Voice Startup Valued at $200 Million

A lead researcher behind OpenAI’s voice assistant has raised $40 million in funding from venture firm Andreessen Horowitz for a new artificial intelligence startup focused on helping people have better spoken conversations with computers.

WaveForms AI, which launched Monday, is working on AI audio software to pick up on emotional cues and enable more seamless verbal interactions with machines, co-founder and chief executive officer Alexis Conneau told Bloomberg News. The seed funding values WaveForms at $200 million, the company said.

The startup is one of a growing number of AI companies moving beyond text-based chatbots to offer human-sounding voice features. The technology offers the promise of creating more ...