Raw Ventures launches €10,000 grant for startups in the vertical video industry

It has been a month since our third Global MediaTech Pitch Day in Barcelona, where we gathered over 200 guests, hosted three panel discussions, and watched nine startups - selected from more than 500 applications - present their ideas to investors and industry experts.

For Raw Ventures, the mission has always been to identify early shifts in how media is created, distributed, and experienced. Following this year’s event, one trend stands out clearly: the rapid rise of vertical video.

A NEW CHAPTER FOR MEDIATECH

To support the next wave of innovation in this space, Raw Ventures is launching a €10,000 non-dilutive grant for projects built around the vertical video format - from content creation and distribution to production tools, analytics, and monetisation technologies.

The programme is open to:

• Creators and studios developing micro-series, micro-dramas, or animation in vertical format

• Platforms and distributors (apps, CMS, infrastructure)

• AI and production tools (pre/post-production, dubbing, VFX, QC)

• Monetisation and analytics solutions (adtech, IP, measurement)

Stage: pre-seed to Series A
Equity: none
Deadline: 14 December
Apply here: Grant Application

Through this initiative, Raw Ventures aims to back promising startups, emerging creators, and technology teams experimenting with new forms of digital storytelling.

WHY VERTICAL VIDEO MATTERS

Digital storytelling is changing. What began as short social clips popularised by TikTok in 2016 has evolved into a standalone content category and a fast-growing global market.

Industry estimates suggest that mobile-first micro-dramas - serialised, phone-native stories shot in 9:16 - will exceed $11 billion in global revenues by 2025, with China already generating over $7 billion and more than 600 million active viewers. In 2024, revenue from China’s micro-dramas even surpassed the country’s traditional box office, marking a major shift in audience behaviour and media economics.

This shift is not just about shorter videos - it is about how audiences consume media. Viewers increasingly prefer vertical, mobile-native formats designed for fragmented attention spans and personalised feeds. The format enables new creative models, production economics, and monetisation methods - from interactive storytelling to integrated e-commerce.

Beyond Asia, dedicated vertical-series platforms such as ReelShort and DramaBox now rank among the top 20 entertainment apps in the US by revenue, and studios like FOX and Disney have started commissioning vertical content slates.

AN INDUSTRY IN TRANSITION

As MediaTech continues to evolve, vertical video represents both a creative and technological inflection point.

• For creators, it offers low-cost experimentation and access to massive mobile audiences.

• For platforms, it opens opportunities to rethink engagement, discovery, and revenue models.

• For investors, it signals the emergence of a new content ecosystem that merges entertainment, technology, and data-driven personalisation.

Early indicators suggest this category will continue to grow at double-digit annual rates globally, with increasing professionalisation, new genre diversification, and stronger integration between content, commerce, and AI-enabled localisation.

SUPPORTING THE FUTURE OF DIGITAL STORYTELLING

At Raw Ventures, we believe the vertical video format is not a passing trend but a fundamental shift in how stories are told and experienced. With this grant programme, we aim to empower the creators and technologists defining this change - helping them test, build, and scale new products at the earliest stages.

Applications for the Vertical Video Grant are open until 14 December.

Apply here: Grant Application