Clouted, the AI-powered “Virality Engine” designed for artists, festivals, labels, and culture-driven brands, has successfully closed a $7 million seed round. This significant investment aims to revolutionize how short-form content is discovered, clipped, and distributed across today’s competitive social media landscape.
The funding round was led by Slow Ventures, with notable participation from Gold House Ventures, Weekend Fund, LINE-Yahoo’s Z VC, Gondor Capital, Iterative, AppWorks, Peak XV’s Surge, and a16z Speedrun.
Founded by Southeast Asian entrepreneur Justin Gorriceta-Banusing, Clouted was born from a clear observation: in an era dominated by algorithms, high-quality music and cultural events often struggle to find their audience without a sophisticated distribution strategy. “I built Clouted because I lived the problem firsthand,” says Gorriceta-Banusing. “As a DJ and festival producer, I had great music, great shows, and almost no one seeing them… It was always distribution.”
Gorriceta-Banusing, who is also a seasoned DJ and festival producer, initially stress-tested the platform on his own venture, &FRIENDS Festival. The event has since grown into one of the most prominent EDM and pop-culture gatherings in the Philippines, attracting over 20,000 attendees per edition. The internal tool, which was originally designed to transform raw festival footage into viral-ready clips, proved instrumental in driving ticket sales, streaming numbers, and overall cultural momentum.
How Clouted Works
Clouted’s Distribution Intelligence platform is designed to automate the entire lifecycle of short-form content:
- AI-Driven Curation: The platform identifies the most viral-worthy moments from long-form footage.
- Global Creator Network: A network of over 100,000 gig creators handles the clipping and editing process at scale.
- Strategic Distribution: Proprietary testing and optimization algorithms determine the ideal timing, platform, and audience for each clip.
- Measurable Outcomes: Success is tracked through tangible metrics, including streams, chart positions, ticket scans, and brand lift.
In just six months, Clouted has powered over 250 campaigns, generating more than 1 billion views for clients across the music, entertainment, tech, and consumer brand sectors.
The Future of EDM Marketing
The electronic music industry is currently facing unprecedented fragmentation. With hundreds of thousands of tracks released every month and constant shifts in the algorithms governing TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts, labels and promoters are finding it increasingly difficult to cut through the noise.
Clouted provides a data-driven alternative to traditional performance marketing. For festival organizers, the platform offers a way to turn every set, backstage moment, and crowd reaction into a series of micro-touchpoints that foster genuine attendance and fan loyalty. As Gorriceta-Banusing noted, the platform is designed to improve over time, with each campaign making the next one faster and more effective by learning which formats and distribution channels yield the highest conversion rates.