Ex-Ramp Builders Pivot Hard, Land $20M for Melius After Ditching Their First Bet
A handful of former Ramp engineers just closed a $20 million round for Melius, a company that honestly took a hard left from its original vision. They started out trying to help marketers manage and optimize ad spend, but scrapped that whole direction and rebuilt around something totally different — tools that actually generate creative assets and full campaign workflows. The pivot makes sense when you think about where the market’s heading, especially with how much time teams waste tweaking variations instead of shipping. If you’re curious about the broader tech around all this, checking out our guide on What is AI might help clear up some of the buzzwords flying around these days.
The new crew landed backing from heavy hitters like CRV and General Catalyst, which says something, because investors aren’t exactly handing out cash left and right these days. Real talk, raising $20M after a total restart takes guts, but also shows you don’t always have to nail it on the first try. Their latest product rides the wave of generative video and automated creative — hot space, no joke. People working in this arena often get caught up in the weeds of AI Tokens, but Melius seems focused on the output side, not the infra grind. That could be exactly why they’re winning over funds.
Why it matters:
- Pivots can pay off big. The team didn’t fold after scrapping their first product — they reloaded and landed serious money. That’s a message for every founder watching their early idea flop and wondering if they should just quit. They didn’t. Seriously, man, that takes a certain kind of grit.
- Creative AI tools are heating up. Marketers and brands are drowning in content demands, and platforms that generate actual campaign assets instead of just optimizing spend hit a nerve. It’s a different angle than most of the hype around AI Models, and it might just be the more practical play for enterprises right now.
- Bold-stage investors are still deploying. CRV and General Catalyst writing $20M checks post-pivot is notable. A lot of people say venture capital dried up, but capital’s still flowing to the right teams with the right timing. Look, the market’s pickier, but it’s definitely still open for business.