Captions, the popular AI-powered video creation platform, has just closed a $60 million Series C funding round, pushing the company's total raised capital to $100 million and its valuation to a hefty $500 million. This funding milestone marks a significant leap for the New York-based startup, which has been creating waves across the landscape of video content creation.
Led by Index Ventures, the funding round saw participation from a mix of returning heavyweights and notable new investors. Kleiner Perkins, Andreessen Horowitz, and Sequoia Capital doubled down on their earlier bets, while Adobe Ventures, HubSpot Ventures, and even Hollywood star Jared Leto joined the cap table for the first time.
"We're excited to share our plan to invest $100M into advancing generative video research from New York City," said Gaurav Misra, co-founder and CEO of Captions. Misra's statement underscores the company's commitment to positioning New York as a burgeoning AI hub, challenging the traditional dominance of Silicon Valley in the tech sector.
Captions has become especially popular in the creator economy with its suite of AI-powered tools that democratize video production. The company's recent launch of AI Creator, a groundbreaking 3D avatar system designed for content creation, exemplifies its innovative approach. This feature, along with others like AI Edit and Lipdub, has propelled Captions to over 10 million mobile downloads and 3 million monthly active users.
Damir Becirovic, Partner at Index Ventures, highlighted the transformative potential of Captions' technology: "The company allows anyone to bring their stories to life in ways that were previously unimaginable and to truly share them with the whole world."
As short-form video continues its meteoric rise across social media platforms, the demand for accessible, high-quality video creation tools has never been higher. Brandon Greer, Head of HubSpot Ventures, noted, "Captions is uniquely positioned to transform how marketers create videos and engage with customers."
Looking ahead, Captions plans to invest up to $100 million to expand its machine learning team and double down on in-house research efforts. This strategic focus on R&D signals the company's ambition to maintain its technological edge in the fiercely competitive AI landscape.