Clouted Raises $7 Million to Standardize Viral Video Clipping Through AI

What happened

Clouted, a startup focused on short-form video infrastructure, has announced a $7 million seed funding round led by Slow Ventures. The capital will support the expansion of its platform, which automates the "clipping" process—extracting the most engaging 30 to 90 seconds from longer video content—and manages distribution across social media channels.

What's new in this update

This funding round introduces participation from Gold House Ventures, Weekend Fund, and Peak XV’s Surge. While the company initially emerged from Andreessen Horowitz’s Speedrun accelerator in 2024, this new capital injection signals investor confidence in Clouted’s "penetration testing" approach to social media algorithms.

Key details

The platform utilizes a two-pronged system: a network of over 100,000 independent creators who perform the actual editing, and an AI engine that determines the optimal platform and target audience for each clip. By running continuous testing loops, the system identifies which formats and channels generate the most engagement, effectively learning from each campaign to improve future performance.

Background and context

Founder Justin Banusing originally developed the technology to promote &Friends, an electronic music festival in Manila. The startup enters a competitive landscape that includes automated clipping rivals like Overlap AI, but Banusing views the company’s ultimate trajectory as a competitor to large-scale marketing infrastructure providers such as CreatorIQ and Hightouch.

What to watch next

Clouted aims to transition from a volume-driven tool into a core enterprise marketing layer. Industry observers will likely watch the startup's ability to scale its data-driven feedback loop, which seeks to turn social media distribution into a more predictable science for major brands and agencies.