Clubhouse, a San Francisco-based audio social network, raised about $ 100 million, led by existing investor Andreessen Horowitz, at a $ 1 billion post-cash valuation, Axios said. The deal was announced publicly, but the details of the dollar were not.
Why does it matter: The startup says it had two million users last week, despite launching less than a year ago, and has maintained very tight control over new invitations until fairly recently. Now it also intends to launch a money-making program for creators, which could increase usage and open up its own Clubhouse income.
Details: Clubhouse says it now has “over 180 investors.” It sounds damn good, but most of those media are said to fit on a single line through a zero-charge SPV.
Bottom line: This is a high risk / high reward bet.
- risk is that the audio boom is artificially inflated by the pandemic at home and that Andreessen Horowitz’s confidence is colored by the dependence of some partners to use Clubhouse.
- Award is that this is the next evolution of social networks and that Andreessen Horowitz has just prevented other investors like Sequoia Capital from doing so with WhatsApp.