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KOR Protocol Secures $7.5 Million Series A at $100 Million Valuation to Expand AI-Enabled Creative Clearinghouse
In a move that signals growing confidence in AI‑powered creative ecosystems, London‑based KOR Protocol announced on 7 July 2026 that it has closed a $7.5 million Series A round, valuing the company at $100 million.
The funding was led by 1kx and Blockchain Capital, two investors that have just joined a growing list of backers that includes Republic Crypto, Sfermion, Animoca Brands, Solana, Avalanche, Alumni Ventures, SevenX and other strategic players from the digital‑asset, entertainment and emerging‑technology sectors.
KOR’s platform is billed as a “creative asset clearinghouse” that bridges the gap between emerging talent and the labels, agencies, brands and distribution networks that turn ideas into revenue. While artificial intelligence has lowered the cost of producing professional‑grade content, the company argues that discovery, distribution and payment remain fragmented. KOR seeks to provide an end‑to‑end system in which output can be registered, talent can be guided by AI agents, opportunities routed to the right partners, and payments move faster and more transparently.
The firm is focused on the entertainment sector, where the mismatch between what audiences consume and who captures the value is most pronounced. KOR says the industry still relies on manual scouting, fragmented data, slow deal flow and outdated payment systems. Its platform is intended to rebuild that infrastructure for the AI era.
According to the company, the Series A round validates the need for infrastructure that moves value, not just creates it. The capital will be used to expand the supply of licensed music and entertainment intellectual property (IP) available to AI‑native products, deepen the protocol and product stack, and bring more creators, rights holders and developers into the ecosystem.
Ritty Quin, who was appointed CEO late last year, said: “AI has removed many of the barriers to creating professional work, but it has not fixed what happens next. As both an artist and an operator, I know how difficult it is to translate strong work and audience momentum into distribution, partnerships, and sustainable revenue. KOR is building the system that connects those pieces by helping talent get recognized earlier, reach the right opportunities, and build lasting careers.”
KOR’s traction to date includes more than 1 million lifetime sign‑ups, 400 000 connected wallets, over 1 000 IP partners and more than $2 million in gross revenue. Current IP partners include Black Mirror, Beatport, mau5trap, Imogen Heap, Banijay Group, KDDI and others.
The platform is built around three core functions:
1. Production – establishing origin, authenticity, ownership and clearance for creative work. 2. Distribution – using intelligence and workflow tools to route talent, content and opportunities to the right partners. 3. Monetisation – helping creators and commercial partners manage payments, splits, commissions, licensing flows and revenue opportunities.
Several applications are already built on the KOR protocol. KORUS is a music remixing and creation tool that lets artists release official music packs for fans and creators to remix. Pacer is an AI operating system for music that assists artists and teams with release strategy, audience intelligence, partner outreach and workflow execution. Other apps include VRSNS, Streamline and KOR Hubs.
The new funding will support the next phase of growth, expanding product capabilities, scaling strategic partnerships across music and entertainment, onboarding more creators and commercial partners, and building toward the next major network rollout. KOR’s long‑term vision is to become the clearinghouse where creative work enters the AI economy, finds the right demand and clears value back to its source.
For more information, visit korprotocol.io.
The funding was led by 1kx and Blockchain Capital, two investors that have just joined a growing list of backers that includes Republic Crypto, Sfermion, Animoca Brands, Solana, Avalanche, Alumni Ventures, SevenX and other strategic players from the digital‑asset, entertainment and emerging‑technology sectors.
KOR’s platform is billed as a “creative asset clearinghouse” that bridges the gap between emerging talent and the labels, agencies, brands and distribution networks that turn ideas into revenue. While artificial intelligence has lowered the cost of producing professional‑grade content, the company argues that discovery, distribution and payment remain fragmented. KOR seeks to provide an end‑to‑end system in which output can be registered, talent can be guided by AI agents, opportunities routed to the right partners, and payments move faster and more transparently.
The firm is focused on the entertainment sector, where the mismatch between what audiences consume and who captures the value is most pronounced. KOR says the industry still relies on manual scouting, fragmented data, slow deal flow and outdated payment systems. Its platform is intended to rebuild that infrastructure for the AI era.
According to the company, the Series A round validates the need for infrastructure that moves value, not just creates it. The capital will be used to expand the supply of licensed music and entertainment intellectual property (IP) available to AI‑native products, deepen the protocol and product stack, and bring more creators, rights holders and developers into the ecosystem.
Ritty Quin, who was appointed CEO late last year, said: “AI has removed many of the barriers to creating professional work, but it has not fixed what happens next. As both an artist and an operator, I know how difficult it is to translate strong work and audience momentum into distribution, partnerships, and sustainable revenue. KOR is building the system that connects those pieces by helping talent get recognized earlier, reach the right opportunities, and build lasting careers.”
KOR’s traction to date includes more than 1 million lifetime sign‑ups, 400 000 connected wallets, over 1 000 IP partners and more than $2 million in gross revenue. Current IP partners include Black Mirror, Beatport, mau5trap, Imogen Heap, Banijay Group, KDDI and others.
The platform is built around three core functions:
1. Production – establishing origin, authenticity, ownership and clearance for creative work. 2. Distribution – using intelligence and workflow tools to route talent, content and opportunities to the right partners. 3. Monetisation – helping creators and commercial partners manage payments, splits, commissions, licensing flows and revenue opportunities.
Several applications are already built on the KOR protocol. KORUS is a music remixing and creation tool that lets artists release official music packs for fans and creators to remix. Pacer is an AI operating system for music that assists artists and teams with release strategy, audience intelligence, partner outreach and workflow execution. Other apps include VRSNS, Streamline and KOR Hubs.
The new funding will support the next phase of growth, expanding product capabilities, scaling strategic partnerships across music and entertainment, onboarding more creators and commercial partners, and building toward the next major network rollout. KOR’s long‑term vision is to become the clearinghouse where creative work enters the AI economy, finds the right demand and clears value back to its source.
For more information, visit korprotocol.io.
