At conferences, speakers frequently deliver keynotes or panel talks in languages that many attendees do not understand. Attendees often resort to phones and translation apps to capture distant audio, an approach that frequently falls short. Mixhalo, a real-time audio startup addressing these exact challenges, is joining DeepL to enhance the German company's translation tools and deliver improved experiences in live settings.

Mixhalo was established in 2016 by Incubus guitarist Mike Einziger, violinist Ann Marie Simpson-Einziger, and Vik Singh, who serves as the startup's current CEO.

The firm initially focused on elevating concert audio for attendees but later shifted toward powering real-time audio solutions for sports and live events. It secured more than $39 million from backers such as Fortress Investment, Founders Fund, Defy Partners, and Cowboy Ventures.

Mixhalo CEO Singh noted in an email that emerging voice models have helped the company by allowing integration and performance comparisons. While the growth of voice AI did not directly spark acquisition discussions, he observed that expanding model providers could begin overlapping with Mixhalo's domain and create pricing pressures.

Mixhalo already used DeepL as its main translation provider, making closer collaboration a logical step.

Singh explained: "The DeepL conversation developed naturally. Mixhalo has been a long-time DeepL customer. I attended a customer dinner and sat next to Sebastian, DeepL's CTO. As we discussed the shared ground in events, APIs, and applications - from meeting voice tools to document translation and live events - the fit became clear."

DeepL has long specialized in text translation yet has expanded into voice offerings recently. In 2024 the company introduced voice-to-text translation across more than 33 languages. This April it added a voice-to-voice suite aimed at multilingual meetings. Acquiring Mixhalo extends these capabilities into live-event environments.

"Mixhalo serves as both a solution and a showcase for us," DeepL CEO Jarek Kutylowski said. "The platform demonstrates how DeepL technology performs in real time at conferences and similar on-site gatherings."

Kutylowski added that the acquisition of the San Francisco-based Mixhalo includes plans to open a Bay Area office, supporting deeper U.S. expansion. Mixhalo competes with providers such as Wordly AI and Palabra, which is backed by Seven Seven Six.