Clipto raises $15 million at $250 million valuation for AI-powered video and file search

San Francisco-based startup Clipto has raised $15 million in an equity funding round, valuing the AI-powered file search platform at $250 million. Backed by investors including HSG and GL Ventures, the company has reached $15 million in annual recurring revenue and is profitable. Clipto allows users to search local files using natural language and recently added support for the Model Context Protocol, positioning itself to compete with tech giants like Adobe, Apple, and Google.

Clipto funding round

• ▪Clipto plans to use the $15 million in funding to improve its AI models, expand computing infrastructure for consumer devices, and develop integrations with AI agents.
• ▪San Francisco-based startup Clipto raised $15 million in an equity financing round to expand its AI-powered file search platform.
• ▪The $15 million funding round was backed by HSG, GL Ventures, EnvisionX Capital, Palm Drive Capital, Hans Tung, Lu Zhang, and 522 Ventures.

$250 million valuation

• ▪Clipto was founded in 2023 and reached its $250 million valuation within three years of its launch.
• ▪The $15 million equity financing round valued Clipto at a post-money valuation of $250 million.

AI-powered file search

• ▪In August 2026, Clipto introduced support for the Model Context Protocol, allowing AI applications to connect to external data sources with user permission.
• ▪Clipto processes indexed files locally on the user's device, meaning files do not need to be uploaded to cloud storage.
• ▪Clipto develops an AI platform that indexes files on users' computers, including videos, audio, images, documents, and meeting notes, to make them searchable via natural language.

Revenue metrics

• ▪More than 30 million people have used Clipto's products since launch, and the company has hundreds of thousands of paid subscribers.
• ▪Clipto reached $15 million in annual recurring revenue at the beginning of 2026 and is profitable on a net income basis.

Henry Kang founder background

• ▪Henry Kang's second startup, Zenvideo, which focused on making video creation easier, was acquired by Tencent in 2020.
• ▪Clipto founder Henry Kang researched robots capable of recording surroundings and recognizing objects while pursuing his PhD at Carnegie Mellon University in 2006.

Competition from tech giants

• ▪Clipto aims to differentiate itself from tech giants by enabling simultaneous searches across multiple file types and allowing users to send materials to ChatGPT and Claude.
• ▪Clipto competes with Adobe, Apple, and Google, which offer AI-powered search features in Premiere, Apple Photos, and Google Photos respectively.