# Modulate raises $25M for voice AI safety

> Boston startup Modulate has raised twenty five million dollars to expand its voice analysis platform that detects deepfakes, analyzes emotion, and monitors AI agents in regulated industries.
- Title: Modulate raises $25M for voice AI safety · TechCrunch
- Summary: Boston startup Modulate has raised twenty five million dollars to expand its voice analysis platform that detects deepfakes, analyzes emotion, and monitors…
- Keywords: modulate, voice ai, deepfake detection, fundraising, boston, future ventures, hyperplane, lakestar, technology, startups, raises, 25M
- Source: TechCrunch — https://techcrunch.com/2026/09/28/modulate-raises-25m-for-its-voice-models-and-analysis-suite
- Author: Ivan Mehta
- Published: 2026-09-28T14:05:00+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: modulate, voice ai, deepfake detection, fundraising, boston, future ventures, hyperplane, lakestar, technology, startups
## Boston startup raises $25M
Modulate, a Boston-based voice intelligence startup, has raised twenty five million dollars in new funding led by Future Ventures with participation from Hyperplane and Lakestar.
## What Modulate's platform does
The platform uses small models to offer enterprises transcription, emotional analysis, deepfake and AI music detection, and policy enforcement for voice agents in regulated industries.
## From gaming to voice safety
Founded in two thousand seventeen by Mike Pappas and Carter Huffman, MIT physics undergrads who met at university, Modulate started in gaming voice modulation before shifting to voice-based moderation.
## One hundred models in two categories
Modulate runs more than one hundred models split into signal extraction models for vocal emotion, tone and synthetic voice detection, and analysis models that assess intent and rule violations.
## Why smaller models matter
Because Modulate runs smaller models, the company does not need specialized hardware and high compute costs, making it easier to train new models and add them as needed.
## Beyond simple emotion detection
Carter Huffman said many people are polite to AI agents even when dissatisfied. Modulate gives enterprises granular data on customer intent and response beyond basic positive or negative analysis.

> many times people will be polite even to, like, AI agents or bots. Right. And they won't come across as angry, but they'll be very dissatisfied
## Expanding the team
Modulate currently has forty to forty five employees and aims to add ten more people in the coming months to bolster model building and increase on-premises and on-device deployment capabilities.
## Key takeaway

Modulate raised twenty five million dollars to expand its voice intelligence platform for detecting deepfakes and analyzing customer intent in enterprise voice AI systems.