Founded 2017 by Tom Livne, Eric Shellef, Kobi Ben Tzvi. $550M+ raised, $2B valuation. AI + human hybrid transcription for legal, education, media. 2,000+ customers.
AI-powered transcription and captioning platform · Founded 2017 by Tom Livne, Eric Shellef, and Kobi Ben Tzvi · HQ Tel Aviv + New York · $550M+ raised · $2B valuation (November 2021) · AI + human hybrid model · 2,000+ customers across legal, education, media, corporate.
Verbit at a Glance
| Company | Verbit Software Ltd. |
| Founded | 2017, Tel Aviv |
| Co-founders | Tom Livne (CEO) · Eric Shellef · Kobi Ben Tzvi |
| Headquarters | Tel Aviv, Israel + New York |
| Product | AI-powered transcription and captioning with human-in-the-loop verification — legal, education, media, corporate, government |
| Total funding | $550M+ (including secondary transactions) |
| Valuation | $2B (Series E, November 2021) |
| Customers | 2,000+ across education, legal, media, corporate, government |
| Workforce model | ~470 employees + 35,000 freelance transcribers + 600 professional captioners |
| Status | Private |
Livne: Automating a $30 Billion Manual Market
Tom Livne founded Verbit with a thesis that the $30 billion global transcription market was structurally ripe for AI disruption — but that pure AI (fully automated speech-to-text) was not yet accurate enough for the sectors that need transcription most: courtrooms, depositions, university lectures, broadcast media, and corporate earnings calls. These environments demand near-perfect accuracy, specialized vocabulary, speaker identification, and formatted output that 2017-era automated systems could not reliably deliver.
Verbit's solution was a hybrid model: AI handles the bulk transcription at high speed, then human transcribers and captioners review, correct, and format the output. The AI learns from the human corrections, improving over time for each customer's domain and vocabulary. This human-in-the-loop architecture delivers accuracy rates that approach 99 percent while processing at speeds far faster than fully manual transcription.
The Growth Trajectory
Verbit's funding arc was among the fastest in Israeli enterprise SaaS. The company raised $60 million in Series C (2020), $157 million in Series D at $1 billion+ (June 2021, led by Sapphire Ventures — unicorn status), and $250 million in Series E at $2 billion (November 2021, led by Third Point Ventures — doubling the valuation in five months). Total funding exceeded $550 million including secondary transactions. The pandemic-era acceleration of remote work, remote learning, and virtual court proceedings drove explosive demand for transcription and captioning services.
Verbit also grew through acquisition, purchasing VITAC — one of the largest captioning providers in the US — to become the dominant player in closed captioning for broadcast and live events. The combined entity served over 2,000 customers with a workforce model of approximately 470 employees plus 35,000 freelance transcribers and 600 professional captioners globally.
The AI Disruption Risk
Verbit's hybrid model faces a structural question in the generative AI era: as large language models (Whisper, Gemini, Claude) achieve higher and higher speech-to-text accuracy, does the human-in-the-loop layer remain a competitive advantage or become a cost burden? The company's bet is that regulated and professional-grade transcription — legal depositions, medical records, broadcast captioning — will continue to require human verification for liability and compliance reasons, even as consumer-grade transcription becomes fully automated. The $2 billion valuation set in November 2021 has not been publicly refreshed.
Verbit in the Israeli AI-Application Layer
Verbit represents the Israeli AI-application layer — companies that apply machine learning and NLP to specific vertical workflows rather than building foundation models. It is a peer to Gong (AI for sales), BioCatch (behavioral biometrics for banking), and Yotpo (AI for eCommerce retention) — Israeli companies that use AI as the engine inside a domain-specific SaaS platform.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who founded Verbit?
Tom Livne (CEO), Eric Shellef, and Kobi Ben Tzvi co-founded Verbit in Tel Aviv in 2017.
What does Verbit do?
Verbit provides AI-powered transcription and captioning with human verification for legal, education, media, corporate, and government customers.
How much has Verbit raised?
Over $550 million including secondary transactions, reaching a $2 billion valuation in November 2021.
What is the hybrid model?
AI handles bulk transcription at speed, then 35,000+ human transcribers review and correct the output for near-perfect accuracy.
Is Verbit an Israeli company?
Yes — co-headquartered in Tel Aviv and New York.
Who are Verbit's competitors?
Rev, Otter.ai, TranscribeMe, and increasingly the built-in transcription features of Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet.
What is the VITAC acquisition?
Verbit acquired VITAC, one of the largest US captioning providers, making it the dominant player in broadcast closed captioning.
Primary Sources
Verbit company press releases on funding rounds. NoCamels Series D and Series E coverage. Calcalist/CTech valuation reporting. Times of Israel and Jerusalem Post unicorn coverage. Crunchbase and PitchBook funding data.