Humtap

Humtap operates as a technology company in the artificial intelligence and digital media sectors, with its main offering being an AI-powered music creation platform. Founded in 2013 by Tamer Rashad, a former Wall Street executive with over 25 years of experience in corporate strategy and business development, the company was established to make music creation accessible to everyone, not just musicians. Rashad's background includes roles as CEO of LGT Middle East and Managing Director at Merrill Lynch, where he developed a B2B social networking software platform. Headquartered in San Francisco, with a presence in Kraków, Poland, Humtap has focused on developing proprietary technology for real-time, on-device music generation.

The core of Humtap's business is its mobile application, which allows users to generate original, studio-quality music by simply humming a melody and tapping a rhythm. The company's AI and algorithmic composition engine then transforms these inputs into a complete song, which can be customized across various genres like hip-hop, rock, and electronic music. The platform is designed for both individual consumers seeking to express themselves on social media and for businesses needing original soundtracks for online content. The business model involves jointly owning the created music with the user and then licensing these tracks on various platforms for commercial use in advertisements or events, sharing the revenue with the creator. This approach circumvents copyright and royalty complications often associated with using existing music.

Humtap's product is an iOS application that uses the phone's hardware to perform all AI-driven music generation in real-time. Key features include the ability to hum a melody, tap a beat, add vocals with effects, adjust tempo, and mix instruments. Beyond audio, the app integrates video, allowing users to create music videos by attaching the generated songs to new or existing videos from their camera roll, which can then be shared on social platforms. Initially backed by investors like 500 Global and raising $1.5M in a 2014 seed round, the company was also part of the Abbey Road Red incubator program. While PitchBook lists the company as "Out of Business" as of March 2018, the initial information provided indicates it received R&D grant funding in Poland in 2020.

Keywords: AI music generation, music creation app, generative music, social music sharing, Tamer Rashad, mobile music production, user-generated music, royalty-free music, algorithmic composition, real-time music creation, music video maker, audio technology, social streaming, digital media, interactive music, San Francisco startup, 500 Global, Abbey Road Red, AI audio tools, creative technology