“We’re going to become a text and video brand, and we’re going to be fluent in both,” he said. Mic launched its first video series, Flip the Script, back in March, and Altchek said it has seen 33 million views across its eight episodes. The company has now raised more than $32 million total.Īltchek said the money will allow Mic to grow its brand partnership team, namely people who work with advertisers to create branded content.Īnd yes, there are plans to increase spending on video. Currently he serves as Chairman at Interior Define and Chairman at Monica + Andy. European media giant Axel Springer also participated, as did existing backers Lerer Hippeau Ventures, Jim Clark, Advancit Capital, Red Swan Ventures and the John S. The round was led by previous investor Lightspeed Venture Partners.
Red swan ventures series#
Naturally, the Series B funding will play a big part in that growth, too. That’s … part-and-parcel with Mic’s DNA.”Īs for why Sikka wanted to join Mic, she said in the hiring release, “Millennials are a vast, engaged audience and I am excited to join an organization that is committed to growing a vital, relevant news brand for the nation’s largest demo.” “She also did a great job at NPR of hiring new stars and making it a much more diverse place to work. If Black Swans are unforeseen calamitous events, Red Swans are great companies most of us never saw coming. “She did a great job transforming NPR and bringing it into the 21st century,” he said. Red Swan invests in amazing humans Red Swan invests in entrepreneurs who delight customers, create culture, and disrupt industries. Altchek suggested that Sikka is the ideal person to lead this growth. The company has had some bumps (it fired news director Jared Keller after Gawker reported multiple instances of plagiarism), but it says its audience tripled between January 2014 and May 2015, from 9 million to 30 million, with 70 percent of those readers under the age of 35.Ĭo-founder and CEO Christopher Altchek has big plans for expansion - he told me the 45-person newsroom will grow to more 100 people in the next 18 months. (The site was originally called PolicyMic, and while it has rebranded to reflect a broader scope, politics is still a big part of the mix.) Red Swan is a seed stage venture capital firm investing in entrepreneurs who delight customers, create culture, and disrupt industries. At the same time, the tone’s a bit more serious than a site like BuzzFeed. It was a big morning for Mic - the company announced that it has raised $17 million in new funding, and that it’s hired Madhulika Sikka, previously executive editor at NPR News, to take on the same title at Mic.Īs is contractually required for any digital media company raising a big round of funding, Mic is aiming for an audience of millennials.
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