Wirestock Secures $23M to Enhance AI Labs with Creative Multimodal Data
In recent years, creative platforms have recognized the immense value of their data repositories. They face a strategic choice: develop proprietary AI models using this data or monetize it by licensing to external AI laboratories. Wirestock, initially established to assist photographers in distributing and selling their work on stock photography platforms like Shutterstock, has opted for the latter approach.
In 2023, Wirestock transitioned into a data provider, offering comprehensive datasets encompassing images, videos, design assets, and gaming and 3D content to AI laboratories. The platform has successfully onboarded over 700,000 artists and designers who contribute to data collection tasks, operating similarly to freelancers on platforms such as Fiverr.
Mikayel Khachatryan, Wirestock’s co-founder and CEO, emphasized the company’s transparency during this shift, allowing artists the option to opt out of the data supply initiative. While specific numbers weren’t disclosed, Khachatryan noted that the majority of contributors chose to participate in the new venture.
Initially, many of our agreements involved selling existing library content. However, we soon encountered numerous custom content and data requests, creating new opportunities for creators and propelling the platform’s growth, Khachatryan explained.
On May 14, 2026, Wirestock announced a successful Series A funding round, raising $23 million to further develop its data supply business. The round was led by Nava Ventures, with participation from SBVP (co-founded by Sheryl Sandberg), Formula VC, and I2BF Ventures.
Khachatryan revealed that Wirestock currently supplies multimodal data to six major foundation model developers, though he refrained from naming them. The company boasts an annual run-rate revenue of $40 million and has distributed $15 million to its contributors to date.
To meet the demands of AI laboratories, Wirestock retrained its teams to meticulously annotate and label data, enhancing its utility for AI development. Additionally, the company expanded its sales and enterprise teams to effectively engage with large-scale clients and diversify its creative asset offerings, including 3D modeling.
Wirestock employs email marketing and referral programs to attract new contributors. Photographers, videographers, and illustrators can apply to provide data through the company’s website. Applicants must complete an unpaid task as a quality assessment before acceptance. The evaluation process combines AI and human reviews to ensure high-quality contributions.
The demand for data supply services is surging as AI laboratories strive to enhance their models. Companies like Surge, Scale AI, and Mercor have rapidly built multi-billion-dollar businesses by catering to this demand. Emerging startups such as Micro1, Human Archive, and Human Native AI are also collaborating with leading AI model developers.
Wirestock aims to specialize in providing data for models that support creative applications, including image and video generation. The company is also exploring additional modalities like audio and music to expand its offerings.
Freddie Martignetti, founder of Nava Ventures, highlighted the strategic importance of multimodal data in AI development. We believe that multimodal data will be increasingly crucial, not just for creating images or videos, but for enabling models to perform real-world tasks, Martignetti stated.
With a team of 60 employees, Wirestock plans to utilize the new funding to hire for research, engineering, and product roles. The company is also developing enterprise software to facilitate collaboration on datasets within AI laboratories.
This funding round brings Wirestock’s total capital raised to approximately $26 million, positioning the company as a significant player in the AI data supply industry.
