Key points
- SoundHound (SOUN) reports Wednesday, August 5, after the close. Consensus is $52.4M in revenue and a $0.06 adjusted loss.
- Full-year guidance of $225M to $260M leaves $128M to $163M for the second half. LivePerson revenue isn't in that figure.
- GAAP gross margin fell to 31% in Q1. The CFO said those costs won't recur.
- Five of the six AI models in our stock contest own SOUN. Claude is the only holdout.
SoundHound AI (SOUN) reports second quarter results on Wednesday, August 5, after the close. Analysts expect revenue near $52.4 million and an adjusted loss of $0.06 a share. That revenue figure sits about 23% above the $42.7 million the company posted a year earlier.
The stock closed at $6.13 on Friday, July 31. It traded as low as $5.65 on July 29, its weakest price in a year. SoundHound ended 2025 at $9.97 and reached $22.17 last October.
What SoundHound sells
SoundHound sells voice software. Drive-thru ordering and in-car assistants are its two largest markets. It also sells into phone support lines. The company had 954 full-time employees at the end of 2025 and runs out of Santa Clara, California.
SoundHound bought SYNQ3 in January 2024 and Amelia Holdings seven months later. Interactions Corporation followed in September 2025. The company's annual report credits a $77.2 million increase in subscription revenue to "the contribution of revenue from acquisitions."
Guidance leaves $128 million to $163 million for the second half
Guidance for the full year is unchanged at $225 million to $260 million. James Hom, interim chief financial officer and co-founder, restated that range on the May 7 earnings call.
First quarter revenue came in at $44.2 million. Add the $52.4 million consensus for the second quarter and the first half reaches $96.6 million. Getting to the bottom of guidance needs $128.4 million after that. The top needs $163.4 million.
"As in prior years, there will be a ramp in revenue through the year given the breadth of our customer base, underlying seasonality, and expected large deal timing both for renewals and new deals," Hom said on the call.
| Period | Revenue | vs. year ago |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 2026 actual | $44.2M | +52% |
| Q2 2026 consensus | $52.4M | +23% |
| H2 to reach $225M | $128.4M | +32% |
| H2 to reach $260M | $163.4M | +68% |
LivePerson (LPSN) isn't in any of those numbers. The $225 million to $260 million range covers SoundHound on its own.
Gross margin fell to 31% in the first quarter
GAAP gross margin was 31% in the first quarter. It ran 48% in the fourth quarter of 2025 and 36% a year earlier. The company put the non-GAAP figure at 50%, which excludes amortization of purchased intangibles and stock compensation.
Hom attributed the decline in part to true-up costs from a third-party vendor in the digital-first business. "These costs will not recur in future periods," he said.
Five of the six AI models in our contest own it
We gave six AI models a paper $10,000 each in late July. Each had to buy AI-related stocks worth under $10 billion. Five bought SoundHound in the first week. Claude was the one that didn't, and it still owns none.
A sizing rule that took effect August 1 lets each model set its own position weights, between 10% and 40%. Gemini and Meta AI rebuilt their entire books that weekend. Both put SoundHound at exactly 10%, the smallest weight the rules permit. ChatGPT, Grok and DeepSeek made no changes and carry it near 19%.
Gemini gave its reason as "resizing down to the minimum limit to reduce risk while retaining strategic optionality in voice AI markets." Meta AI described the same 10% weight as "voice AI leader rebuying the oversold dip to maintain AI voice exposure."
| Model | SOUN value Aug 1 | Share of account |
|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT | $1,976.64 | 19.4% |
| Grok | $1,976.64 | 19.3% |
| DeepSeek | $1,976.64 | 19.0% |
| Gemini | $1,043.30 | 10.0% |
| Meta AI | $1,013.91 | 10.0% |
| Claude | none | 0% |
Claude leads the contest at $10,739 after two weeks.
The LivePerson vote is two weeks later
LivePerson stockholders vote on August 20. SoundHound is paying $42,784,532.64 in stock. The merger agreement prices those shares at a floor of $7.00, and SOUN trades under it. LivePerson's own bankers put a de minimis value on its equity after setting $367.8 million of debt against $101.5 million of cash.
Hom said 2027 revenue would be "at minimum $350 million to $400 million, with at least $100 million of global contribution from LivePerson's long-tenured customers." Chief executive and co-founder Keyvan Mohajer said on the same call that the combined business "is expected to reach $500 million based on the existing customer base alone."
Short interest is 43% of the float
Short sellers held 169.19 million SoundHound shares as of August 2, or 43.03% of the float, according to StockAnalysis.com. Days to cover stands at 6.23.
Both 2026 reports so far have been followed by a lower close. SOUN finished at $8.98 on February 26, the day it reported fourth quarter results. It closed at $8.60 the next session, down 4.2%. After the May 7 report it fell from $9.63 to $8.88, down 7.8%. Two sessions later it was at $8.06.
Hom put cash and equivalents at $216 million with no debt at the end of March, the most recent balance the company has reported.
Related coverage
- The Q2 results: record $61.9 million revenue, a $9 million beat, and a raised floor
- The LivePerson deal terms, the $7.00 collar floor, and the August 20 vote
- We gave six AIs $10,000 each for AI small caps. Five of them bought SoundHound.
Sources
- SoundHound AI, First quarter 2026 results, Form 8-K exhibit 99.1, May 7, 2026
- SoundHound AI, CFO transition, Form 8-K exhibit 99.1, March 18, 2026
- LivePerson, Definitive merger proxy statement (DEFM14A), July 9, 2026
- SoundHound AI short interest and valuation statistics, StockAnalysis.com
This is general market commentary and opinion, not investment advice. Markets can go down as well as up, and you can lose money. Always do your own research and consider speaking with a licensed financial professional before making any investment decision.
