Founders: Justin Evans (VP product and innovation), Stuart Mansbridge (chief music technology officer)
CEO: Pascal Pilon
Launched: 2012
Headquarters: Montreal
Funding: $13 million
Source: LANDR
Pascal Pilon, CEO of LANDR Audio
LANDR Audio is a Montreal-based company that's using artificial intelligence to automate the intricate task of mastering audio tracks. Think of mastering like washing and polishing a car after it's been built. All the parts are there; now you just want it to look (or, in this case, sound) its best. Mastering happens in the final stages of producing a song when it is tweaked and adjusted so that all the little blips are erased and it sounds polished and richer.
The process has traditionally been done by human sound engineers and can cost thousands of dollars, but LANDR thinks A.I. can create a similar experience without the cost. It has created an algorithm that collects and analyzes a huge trove of songs that have been mastered. When a user uploads his or her raw, unmastered song onto LANDR's cloud platform, it is able to make subtle changes and adjustments based on the needs of the track. It then delivers the song track back to the customer quickly.
So far, the company claims it has mastered 3 million tracks for more than 800,000 users. Prices range from $4 to $25 per month for a subscription for the service, depending on the quality and quantity of the audio that needs mastering. Last year the company opened an office in Los Angeles. It has raised $13 million from investors, including Warner Music Group, Plus Eight Equity Partners, Real Ventures and YUL Ventures.
