By Riley Kaminer
The NSFW content space is growing faster than you might think: An expected CAGR of 16.2% will bring the industry to $201 billion by 2032. That’s a titillating prospect for startup founders and investors alike – and with South Florida increasingly a hub for the adult industry, it may be no surprise that Miami is home to VC-backed adult content platform SLUSHY.
The company, which was founded by serial entrepreneur David Gross (CEO) and former Tinder executive Josh Metz (CMO), previously explained their mission of empowering influencers to level up their business.
“For us, it’s about providing creators with better opportunities to further monetize their audiences directly,” Metz told Refresh Miami.
Today, SLUSHY announced that it has raised a $10.2 million seed round. This fresh capital will enable the company to develop new features, onboard more creators, and expand into new markets, including South America.
Mantis VC (GRAMMY Award-winning duo The Chainsmokers), Electric Feel Ventures, Jon Oringer (former CEO of Shutterstock), and Sean Rad (co-founder and former CEO of Tinder) returned to participate in this new round. New investors include high-profile angels such as Edison Chen (founder and CEO of Clapper) and Brooklyn Johnny (music entrepreneur and six-time GRAMMY winner, founder of District 18 Entertainment, and manager to Cardi B).
“Creators need discoverability and promotion. Consumers need intimacy and connection,” Gross said in a statement.
“We merge best-in-class commerce and social tools for creators to connect with and monetize their audiences directly while helping users discover their new favorite content,” he continued. “These funds will advance the growth and development of SLUSHY on the heels of year-over-year platform success.”
Since being founded in 2020, the secure platform has grown to include over 1 million users and 10,000 creators who have collectively produced upwards of 250,000 videos. According to the company, this growth can be attributed to the platform’s ability to foster quality content from established and undiscovered talent and support creators with tools and insights to increase audience and revenue.
One key differentiator for SLUSHY is that creators on its platform needn’t already have heaps of social media followers. Rather, SLUSHY’s commerce and discovery tools enable newbie creators without an existing online presence to gain followers and create a sustainable income.
SLUSHY has inked partnerships with various tech providers to help creators natively leverage the latest and greatest in artificial intelligence – including developing hyper realistic avatars and communicating through AI-based chatbots.
The company is also offering a novel feature for users: a Tinder-esque tool called “Perfect Match” through which users can swipe left and right to curate their ideal feed.
Photo at top of post: From left, SLUSHY CEO David Gross and CMO Josh Metz
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