KOR Protocol, the platform building a creative asset clearinghouse for entertainment talent, has raised £5.5 million in a Series A round from 1kx and Blockchain Capital at a £75 million valuation. The funding will support KOR's next phase of growth as it expands its product capabilities, scales strategic partnerships across music and entertainment, brings more creators and commercial partners onto the platform, and builds toward its next major network rollout.
AI has collapsed the cost of production, but the barrier to being discovered, distributed, and paid has never been higher: independent talent now has the tools to make professional work, but not the coordinated system to turn that work into opportunity. KOR is building the clearinghouse for this market, an end-to-end system where output can be registered, talent can be guided by AI agents, opportunities can be routed to the right labels, agencies, MCNs, brands, curators, and platforms, and payments can move faster and more transparently across the ecosystem. KOR is starting with entertainment because it is where the mismatch is most visible: the industry has the largest attention flows, the highest upside outcomes, and one of the clearest gaps between what gets consumed and who captures the value, yet much of it still relies on manual scouting, fragmented platform data, slow deal flow, and outdated payment systems. KOR's platform is built around three core functions: production, which establishes origin, authenticity, ownership, and clearance for creative work; distribution, which uses intelligence and workflow tools to route talent, content, and opportunities to the right partners; and monetization, which helps creators and commercial partners manage payments, splits, commissions, licensing flows, and revenue opportunities.
Since launch, KOR has surpassed 1 million lifetime sign-ups, 400,000 connected wallets, 1,000+ IP partners, and more than £1.5 million in gross revenue. Current IP partners include Black Mirror, Beatport, mau5trap, Imogen Heap, Banijay Group and KDDI. Ritty Quin was appointed CEO late last year to lead KOR's next phase of growth. A PhD holder and UCL alumnus, he began his career at ByteDance before moving into marketing roles across the technology space, and is also a YouTube Partner and electronic music producer signed to Live Nation Asia, having generated 30M+ impressions as a creator, appeared on Beatport's Top 100 House Charts and BBC Radio 1 Dance, and headlined Creamfields Asia in 2025.
The capital will also let KOR expand the supply of licensed music and entertainment IP available to AI-native products, deepen its protocol and product stack, and bring more creators, rights holders, and developers into a shared ecosystem.
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.
