Moonvalley, a Los Angeles-based startup focused on developing AI tools for video creation, recently secured $43 million in additional funding, according to a filing with the SEC. The filing, submitted on Thursday, reveals that the company has raised around $53 million so far from 14 unnamed investors.
This $10 million injection is part of the existing funding round rather than a completely new one, bringing Moonvalley’s total funding to approximately $124 million, according to PitchBook estimates. This follows the company’s $70 million seed round in November last year. Moonvalley declined to provide any comments on the matter.
The growing availability of video generator tools has caused a surge in providers, saturating the market. Startups like Runway, Lightricks, Genmo, Pika, Higgsfield, Kling, and Luma, alongside tech giants such as OpenAI, Alibaba, and Google, are rapidly releasing new models, many of which offer similar features.
Moonvalley’s Marey model, developed in partnership with AI animation studio Asteria, provides advanced customization options including precise camera and motion controls, and can produce HD clips up to 30 seconds long. The company also claims its model poses lower legal risks compared to some other video-generation tools.
Where Moonvalley aims to stand out—and attract significant venture capital interest—is in the unique data it uses to train its models, combined with enhanced safeguards embedded within its video creation platform.
Moonvalley is collaborating with partners to manage licensing agreements and compile videos into datasets that the company then purchases. This strategy is similar to approaches used by Bria and Adobe, with Adobe sourcing training content from creators via its proprietary Adobe Stock platform.
The startup is also developing an interface for its model, which has not yet been publicly unveiled. According to Moonvalley’s co-founders in recent interviews, the software includes storyboarding features and detailed clip adjustment tools. Marey can create videos not only from text prompts but also from sketches, photos, and other video clips, Moonvalley claims.
Moonvalley was founded by Naeem Talukdar, former head of product growth at Zapier, alongside former DeepMind scientists Mateusz Malinowski and Mik Binkowski. John Thomas, who previously co-founded the startup Draft with Talukdar, has joined as COO. Additionally, Bryn Mooser, head of AI animation studio Asteria, is a co-founder of Moonvalley.
In a March blog post, Moonvalley stated, “We founded Moonvalley to make generative video technology that works for filmmakers and creative professionals.” The company emphasized its commitment to “addressing fear and distrust, as well as solving technical problems that keep generative AI from being a realistic tool for professional production.”
Moonvalley is positioning itself as a leader in the competitive AI video creation space by focusing on innovative technology tailored for creative professionals. By prioritizing ethical data sourcing, developing advanced customization tools, and addressing industry concerns around trust and technical limitations, the startup aims to deliver a practical and reliable solution for filmmakers and content creators.
