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Virtual product placement startup Rembrand has raised $23 million in Series A funding to expand its Generative AI-powered capabilities and launch new business models.
The round was led by super{set}. The Trade Desk, Naver D2SF, and existing investors including BOLD (L’Oréal’s corporate venture fund) and Greycroft also participated in the funding round. Two-year Rembrand raised a total of $ 31 million, and the company account Pepsi, L’Oréal, Garnier, Charles Schwab, Amazon, Virgin Galactic and Lenovo as clients.
Rembrand’s technology analyzes the video frames of the creators’ YouTube and TikTok videos using gen AI to find opportunities to slide into product placements. Unlike traditional AI that relies on text or images, Rembrand’s technology analyzes each video frame to indicate the ideal placement opportunity on the scene – whether it’s a table, a shelf or a wall
With the funding, Rembrand plans to expand that expertise beyond social media to place related TV and film ads, CEO Omar Tawakol told ADWEEK.. The startup is working with a production studio specializing in travel and cooking shows, although Rembrand declined to name the production studio.
Rembrandt technology automates the traditional work and time product placement process and identifies the ideal places for ads in each frame.
“Today, if you want to get into the movie, you have to negotiate to get into the script two years in advance for a can of soda to appear on the kitchen counter,” Tawakol said. “With Rembrand’s technology, you can add this product virtually in post-production. For example, viewers in France might see a Perrier, while those in New York see a Pepsi.
More product placements in videos
Rembrand will also open its AI Studio to all creators in the first quarter. The studio launched last summer as a beta program. The platform allows creators to add virtual products to their videos, while brands can directly manage their creator partnerships.
Rembrand charges marketers on a cost-per-impression model for products that appear in videos, and creators are paid on CPM, or cost per thousand impressions.
Rembrand also plans to make money by licensing its technology to brands, opening up a new revenue stream for the company. In this setup, brands pay technology fees to license Rembrand’s technology and use their existing relationships with creators to run campaigns instead of buying CPM-based placements.
