Epidemic Sound appoints former BBC AI head Danijela Horak as VP of Artificial Intelligence

Danijela Horak will lead Epidemic Sound’s strategy and development of next-generation soundtracking tools for content creators, powered by responsible AI

Stockholm, Sweden, August 21, 2025 – Epidemic Sound, the world’s leading soundtracking platform, has appointed Danijela Horak as Vice President of Artificial Intelligence, starting September 1, 2025. 

Horak joins from the BBC, where she served as Head of AI Research and acted as a key technical adviser to the BBC Responsible AI group. She led the development of editorial-aligned large language models, launching the speech-to-text tool BBC Transcribe, and oversaw research into synthetic media manipulation to power the misinformation detection tool, BBC Verify. 

In her new role at Epidemic Sound, she will drive the company’s AI strategy and lead the development of next-generation creative tools that further integrate machine learning into the soundtracking process in responsible, human-first ways.

“Epidemic Sound has a really unique position to explore AI in a creative field,” said Danijela Horak, Vice President of AI at Epidemic Sound. “I’ve been really impressed by the quality of the tools they’ve launched, their AI commitments, and the core of the rights model. I’m excited to join the team and work closely with its creative communities to shape development and use technology to drive real value for our artists and content creators.”

Before her time at the BBC, Horak was Director of Machine Learning at AIG, where she led global AI initiatives for Commercial Real Estate. She brings over 12 years of experience building and scaling AI and ML solutions across media and enterprise applications. Horak holds a PhD in mathematics, completed postdoctoral fellowships with the University of Warwick and Imperial College London, and her background bridges deep technical expertise with a strong track record of responsible innovation.

At Epidemic Sound, Horak will lead a team of engineers focused on advancing tools like AI voiceovers and smart audio recommendations, reporting to Chief Technology Officer Rikard Herlitz.

“We’re really proud of the suite of AI-powered soundtracking tools we’ve developed for creators and believe we’re just scratching the surface in terms of improving their creative processes,” said Rikard Herlitz, Chief Technology Officer at Epidemic Sound. “We’re delighted to welcome Danijela as an experienced champion of innovative and responsible development to help lead our work here.”

This appointment marks a new phase in Epidemic Sound’s AI investment as the company continues building tools that streamline creative workflows and expand access to high-quality audio. To learn more about Epidemic Sound and its leadership team, visit epidemicsound.com.