Melius, an AI platform that generates ad campaigns, images and videos, announced on Tuesday that it has raised $25 million in funding. The round includes a $20 million Series A led by CRV and a $5 million seed round led by General Catalyst.
The startup was founded by former Ramp engineers Joowon Kim, Young Kim and Arnav Ramu. When the New York-based company first began building over a year ago, the team aimed to create an AI-powered performance marketing tool. After more than six months of work, the founders concluded that the original product “didn’t have legs,” and chose to change direction.
According to co-founder Joowon Kim, the team scrapped their initial codebase — he described it as having “burned all of it” — and started developing a new offering. Nearly a year after the initial launch, Melius repositioned itself and unveiled a platform it calls an "agents lab for creative work."
Melius says it reached more than $1 million in annualized revenue within two months of coming out of stealth in July. The company also acknowledged that its first iteration did not produce immediate breakout success, which prompted the rebuild and refocus on creative asset generation rather than ad spend optimization.
The market for AI tools that generate creative content is crowded. Notable competitors include Higgsfield — which was valued at $5.4 billion in August and reported more than $700 million in annualized revenue — along with smaller startups such as Krea and Flora AI.
Joowon Kim does not view the competition as a major problem. He noted that Higgsfield is growing rapidly but said the total addressable market is large enough to support multiple players. "There are a lot of players, which is pretty exciting," he said, adding that indicates available customers and demand in the space.
On a personal note, Kim, who describes himself as a social media influencer, said he has been interested in making short videos since elementary school and once aspired to be a famous YouTuber. Despite early vlogs not breaking through, his interest in digital media persisted. With Melius, he aims to build the tool he wished he had: a platform where anyone — from casual creators to experienced creative directors — can convert ideas into finished creative assets using plain language.
The newly raised capital will be used to further develop the product and expand Melius’s market presence as it competes with established and emerging players in the AI-driven creative space.
Key facts
- Total funding: $25 million
- Series A: $20 million led by CRV
- Seed: $5 million led by General Catalyst
- Reported revenue milestone: more than $1 million in annualized revenue within two months after coming out of stealth in July
- Competitors: Higgsfield, Krea, Flora AI
Melius’s next priorities are refining the platform and growing its customer base while monitoring a fast-moving market of rivals and growing demand for AI-based creative production.
