Ex-Ramp Engineers Pivot to AI Creative Platform Melius, Raise $25M After Scrapping First Product

Ex-Ramp Engineers Secure $25 Million for AI Creative Platform

Melius, an AI platform designed for generating ad campaigns, images, and videos, announced it has raised $25 million in total funding on Tuesday. The financing includes a $20 million Series A led by CRV and a $5 million seed round led by General Catalyst1

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. The New York-based startup claims to have surpassed $1 million in annualized revenue within just two months of emerging from stealth in July1

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The company was founded by three former Ramp engineers: Joowon Kim, Young Kim, and Arnav Ramu, who worked together at the spend/finance software company before launching their venture1

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. Their journey to building this AI creative platform wasn't straightforward, requiring a complete product pivot that demonstrates both the challenges and opportunities in the rapidly evolving AI landscape.

Complete Product Pivot After Six Months of Development

When Melius first launched over a year ago, the founding team set out to build an AI-powered performance marketing tool focused on helping marketers manage and optimize ad spend1

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. After more than six months of development, the co-founders made a difficult decision: their original concept didn't "have legs," according to Joowon Kim2

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"We scrapped the entire codebase; we burned all of it," Kim revealed1

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. The team recognized a much larger opportunity in building tools that generate creative assets and campaigns themselves, rather than simply managing marketing spend. This bold move to abandon months of work reflects the team's commitment to finding genuine market demand rather than forcing an initial concept.

Building an Agents Lab for Creative Work

Nearly a year after its initial launch, Melius revealed a platform it describes as an "agents lab for creative work"1

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. The AI-powered platform for creating images, videos, and ad campaigns aims to eliminate the gap between creative vision and execution. "Transitioning from wanting to make something to actually making it has never been seamless," Joowon Kim wrote in the announcement2

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The platform enables users to give simple commands like "expose a more natural lighting" and let AI agents handle the technical execution2

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. Kim argued the solution isn't "another tool with a learning curve, but a set of agents whose whole job is to take the thing in your head and do the labor of getting it out"2

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. This approach to AI-driven creative tools focuses on making the creative process accessible to anyone using plain language, from seasoned creative directors to those without technical expertise.

Competing in a Crowded But Growing Market

Melius enters a competitive landscape with several players vying for market share in AI-generated digital media assets. Competitors include Higgsfield, which was valued at $5.4 billion in August and has achieved over $700 million in annualized revenue after three years of operation1

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. Other startups in the space include Krea and Flora AI, all working to help ad agencies, marketers, and brands generate creative content with artificial intelligence.

Despite acknowledging that Higgsfield "is growing like mad," Kim remains confident about Melius's prospects1

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. He believes the market is large enough to support multiple competitors. "There are a lot of players, which is pretty exciting," Kim said. "That means there are customers to be won and there is demand in this space"1

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Personal Passion Drives Product Vision

The connection between former Ramp engineers and an ad generation product may seem unexpected, but Joowon Kim's personal background provides context. Kim, who describes himself as a social media influencer, has been passionate about making short videos since elementary school and once dreamed of becoming a famous YouTuber1

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. "I tried my best to make vlogs," he said. "My dad was great at using FinalCut Pro, but I wasn't"1

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Those early vlogs never gained traction, but his fascination with making digital media remained. With Melius, Kim is building the tool he always wanted: a platform where anyone can turn their ideas into reality without technical barriers. This personal connection to the problem suggests the team understands the frustrations of the creative process firsthand, potentially giving them insight into user needs that goes beyond market research alone. Watch for how Melius differentiates its approach as it competes against established players with significantly larger revenue bases.