The rapidly growing face-swap application, Reface, which allows users to insert their likenesses into famous video scenes with remarkable realism, has secured funding from Andreessen Horowitz. The Silicon Valley venture capital firm is leading a $5.5 million seed investment in the deep tech entertainment company, as announced today.

Reface reports that its applications, available on both iOS and Android, have been downloaded approximately 70 million times since its launch in January 2020 – an increase from 20 million downloads as reported in August. The app has also achieved a position among the top five leading apps in around 100 countries, including the United States, and received recognition as a ‘top app’ in Google Play’s annual best of awards. This represents a significant year of progress for the company.

This level of rapid expansion has attracted considerable attention. In addition to Andreessen Horowitz leading the seed round, Reface has received investment from a number of well-known angel investors with backgrounds in gaming, music, film/content creation, and technology. 

These investors include Ilkka Paananen, CEO of Supercell, and David Helgason, founder of Unity Technologies, representing the gaming sector. From the music industry, Scooter Braun, managing partner of TQ Ventures, known for his work with popular artists such as Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande, and Adam Leber, a manager for Britney Spears and Miley Cyrus, as well as an investor in Uber, have also participated. 

Within the film and content creation realm, angel investors include Matt Stone, Trey Parker, and Peter Serafinowicz (through Deep Voodoo); Bryan Baum and Michael Kives, founder of K5 Global, who have collaborated with figures like Bruce Willis, Jesse Eisenberg, and Eric Stonestreet; and Natalia Vodianova, a model, philanthropist, and actress.

Tech industry investors contributing to the round as angels are Josh Elman (formerly an investment partner at Greylock and a board member of Medium, Operator, Musical.ly, and Jelly) and Sriram Krishnan (an investor and former product lead at Microsoft, Facebook, Snap, and Twitter).

The widespread enthusiasm stems from the convergence of current trends like ‘no code’ platforms and viral social video. (While stretching the definition of ‘no code,’ Reface offers a user-friendly, AI-powered tool for creating professional-quality content; the term ‘no code’ typically applies to b2b tools simplifying app development, but both share the characteristic of enhanced accessibility.)

Backed by a strong group of early-stage investors, Reface’s Ukrainian founders are demonstrating the potential of perseverance in the deep tech space. As previously reported, three of the founders began collaborating nearly a decade ago, refining their machine learning skills from their university days. Their dedication is now yielding substantial results.

“The Reface team has successfully transformed their sophisticated machine learning technology into a consumer application that is both easy to use and enjoyable to share,” stated Connie Chan, general partner at Andreessen Horowitz, in a statement supporting the funding.

“We are only beginning to understand the potential applications of their core technology across consumer, entertainment, and marketing experiences, and the Reface team possesses the creativity and expertise to shape that future,” she continued.

“I am confident that Reface has the potential to become the next-generation personalization platform, enabling interactive experiences with movies, sports, music videos, and other areas of passion,” added Supercell’s Paananen in a separate statement. “I am eager to see the team develop Reface into a community where individuals can forge meaningful connections with artists and each other through content they love.” 

The startup had previously anticipated the detection technology would be available by fall, but its implementation is taking longer than initially expected. However, the company’s viral growth may have shifted its priorities somewhat.

The planned fall launch of user-generated content (UGC) video for face-swapping has also not been fully realized.

A community currently driven by creating and sharing high-quality celebrity video clips presents a different set of considerations compared to allowing users to freely swap faces onto images of family members or others, and also raises concerns about the quality control of source material. Therefore, investing time in establishing robust controls is a prudent business decision, as is maintaining momentum with the viral trend by satisfying content partners.

Responding to inquiries about the delay, Reface explained that UGC video has been “partially” launched, as users can now download their GIFs. “It is still in beta as we are testing and refining – the detection system, moderation processes, and user communication – to ensure responsible content usage,” the company stated, adding: “Regarding video, we are collaborating with a group of creators who provide us with content directly. This allows us to test all UGC mechanics. We intend to release the UGC option to the public by the end of Q1.” 

Regarding the detection tool, Reface stated that it will be launched concurrently with UGC.

“We are training our models to maximize detection accuracy,” the company shared, expressing hope for finalizing the tool in April 2021.

Reface’s ultimate goal is to establish “the largest platform for personalized content” – and to generate revenue through partnerships with content owners and celebrities, offering innovative “creative digital marketing solutions”.

The pandemic-driven surge in demand for engaging social content has undoubtedly aided this mission, even as it has benefited competitors like Snap.

The abundance of individuals, particularly students, spending time at home with their mobile devices this year has created opportunities for growth across the social media landscape. (Andreessen Horowitz has also invested in other social platforms, including the audio-based Clubhouse and the Roblox social gaming platform, among others.)

In August 2020, Reface experienced a surge in popularity, reaching the number one position in the U.S. AppStore – (temporarily) surpassing TikTok and Instagram. Numerous celebrities, including Justin Bieber, Snoop Dogg, Britney Spears, Joe Rogan, Chris Brown, Miley Cyrus and Dua Lipa have shared their refaced videos on social media this year, the company also noted.

This year, the company has established partnerships with prominent figures in the entertainment industry to promote new video releases, including Bieber, Cyrus, and John Legend, and collaborated with Amazon Prime to advertise the Borat movie premiere – resulting in “millions” of additional shares and refaces.  

“Funding from Andreessen Horowitz will enable us to accelerate growth, strengthen our team with new talent, and enhance our technology, while continuing our work on a fake video detection tool to ensure the responsible use of our AI technology,” added Denis Dmitrenko, co-founder, in a statement.