ElevenLabs has launched Instant Soundtracks, a feature that scores an uploaded video with original music and then generates sound effects aligned to moments in the footage, the company said on 15 October 2026.
The update is available immediately in ElevenCreative’s Music Video Editor, Creative Engine (for ads), the ElevenMusic platform, and the ElevenCreative Studio API, according to the company blog post by Renee Zhang.
How Instant Soundtracks works
Users upload a video in ElevenCreative. ElevenLabs says the model scores it with original music, analyses the footage for sound-effect cues, and generates effects aligned to those timestamps. Effects are automatically placed on the timeline; in the Music Video Editor they appear as separate layers so editors can review and adjust them independently of the soundtrack.
The company gives the example of a whoosh timed to a logo at the end of an ad. Editors can add more effects, adjust timing, swap the music, or refine individual moments without starting over, then export from ElevenCreative.
Audio as a reference
A notable control is the option to use the video’s existing audio as a reference for the new score. ElevenLabs says the model can analyse that audio — genre, crescendos, beats per minute or instrumentation, for example — and shape the new music so it matches the character of the original rather than starting entirely from scratch. In API terms this maps to the use_audio_as_reference parameter.
Short-form timing and mood shifts
Instant Soundtracks is pitched at short-form video, with tighter timing around cuts, transitions and on-screen actions. ElevenLabs also says the music’s mood can shift across scenes — for example from EDM or R&B in a fast-paced stretch to acoustic guitar in a slower scene. Those are the company’s product descriptions of behaviour, not third-party quality tests.
Where it ships, and API knobs
Availability, per ElevenLabs:
- Music Video Editor in ElevenCreative’s music tab, with SFX as a separate layer and audio-as-reference controls
- Creative Engine, for adding music and sound effects to ads
- ElevenMusic platform
- ElevenCreative Studio API, with new parameters
add_sfx,separate_tracks, anduse_audio_as_reference
With separate_tracks=true, the API returns a .ZIP containing music and SFX as separate files for downstream mixing in a user’s own pipeline or in Studio.
Limits: up to 10 videos per request, combined up to 200 MB and 10 minutes of video.
Why it matters
Putting music and Foley-like effects on the same auto-timed pass is aimed at creators who already generate or edit short video and do not want a separate sound-design step for every cut. Keeping SFX on their own timeline layers, and offering a ZIP split via the API, is the practical detail agencies and pipelines will care about.
It also continues the consolidation of AI audio stacks — voice, music, and now video-timed effects — inside a single vendor’s creative surface. TSN has covered related AI sound and music-labelling stories separately (see Related stories).
What’s still unknown
- Pricing tiers for Instant Soundtracks versus existing ElevenCreative / ElevenMusic plans.
- How well cue detection handles dialogue-heavy or noisy source video.
- Rights and commercial-use terms for generated music and effects in ads (beyond the product launch note).
What to watch
Watch ElevenLabs docs for fuller API examples and any later quality or length-limit changes as short-form creators push the 10-minute / 200 MB envelope.
What this means
- Live today. Instant Soundtracks is in ElevenCreative, Creative Engine, ElevenMusic and the Studio API.
- Music plus timed SFX. Effects land on separate layers; API can return a ZIP split.
- Limits apply. Ten videos, 200 MB and 10 minutes combined per request.
Sources
Related stories
- Mirelo Launches SFX 2.0, an AI Model That Replaces a Video’s Sound While Keeping the Dialogue
- AI Creative Tools: Cheaper Video, Brand Kits and Claude Motion
- YouTube Music Starts Labelling Songs Made Mainly With AI
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