companies

Midjourney Inc.

San Francisco-based independent research lab behind a popular text-to-image and video generative AI tool, accessed via Discord and a web app; self-funded and profitable.

Midjourney was founded by David Holz, who previously co-founded Leap Motion and worked as a researcher at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The company, based in San Francisco, launched its namesake text-to-image generation tool in open beta in July 2022, initially accessible only through a Discord bot. Midjourney describes itself as an independent research lab exploring new mediums of thought and expanding humanity's imaginative powers. It has released successive model versions and, in August 2024, launched a standalone web interface, later adding video generation capabilities. Unlike most major generative AI companies, Midjourney has remained self-funded without taking venture capital, reportedly reaching around $300 million in revenue in 2024 and roughly $500 million in annualized revenue by mid-2025. In August 2025, it announced a technology licensing partnership with Meta. David Holz remains CEO of the historically low-profile company, which grew from roughly a dozen employees in 2022 to around 200 by 2026 while keeping most operations and leadership details private.

Founded

2021

Headquarters

San Francisco, United States

Sector

lab