Narrative Muse

Who Is Behind the Company

Founding team and senior-team data are not surfaced in the public research. Follow-up diligence is required to identify the leadership team and their operational history.

Links

• Website: https://narrativemuse.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/narrative-muse

What an Investor Needs First

Narrative Muse is a New Zealand-based deep-tech startup applying AI to personalize content discovery and generate predictive audience insights [GridAkl, 2020] [Perplexity Sonar Pro Brief]. Founded in 2016, the company has built a platform that matches user personalities, moods, and identities with recommendations for books, movies, and television, particularly content by women and gender-diverse creatives [GridAkl, 2020]. Its differentiation lies in a claimed forward-looking recommendation engine that uses search data to forecast audience demand and potential hits, aiming to serve both consumers and industry professionals like publishers and producers [GridAkl, 2020] [Perplexity Sonar Pro Brief].

The company has raised undisclosed seed capital, including an angel round in 2019 and an equity crowdfunding round in 2023 [Crunchbase, Aug 2019] [Crunchbase, Mar 2023]. Its business model is B2B2C, offering free consumer recommendations while monetizing through data insights for the media industry.

Over the next 12-18 months, the key watchpoints are the company's ability to break a long silence in public news coverage, demonstrate commercial traction with named publishing or production partners, and provide clarity on its funding runway and revenue model.

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Core product claims and funding events are documented, but key operational details (founders, metrics, investors) lack independent corroboration.

Taxonomy Snapshot

Axis	Classification
Stage	Seed
Business Model	B2B2C
Industry / Vertical	Media / Entertainment
Technology Type	AI / Machine Learning
Geography	Oceania
Growth Profile	Venture Scale

Inside the Company

Narrative Muse was founded in 2016 in Auckland, New Zealand, as a deep-tech startup focused on content discovery [Crunchbase]. The company's mission is to use technology to connect audiences with books, films, and TV shows that reflect their identity and values [Narrative Muse, Unknown].

The company was shortlisted as Startup of the Year at the FutureBook Conference in London for both 2020 and 2023 [GridAKL LinkedIn, Unknown] [nigellopezmcbean.com, Unknown]. A 2020 profile from GridAKL highlighted the company's growth and its core proposition of pairing personalities with book and movie recommendations [GridAkl, 2020].

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Founding year and location confirmed by Crunchbase; mission statement sourced from company website. Milestone claims are from secondary sources with limited corroboration.

Under the Hood

Narrative Muse’s public-facing product is a recommendation engine that positions itself as a departure from popularity-based algorithms. The platform asks users about their mood, taste, and identity to generate personalized suggestions for books and movies, with a stated focus on content by women and gender diverse creatives [GridAkl, 2020]. The company’s marketing frames this as a tool for both consumers seeking diverse stories and for publishers and producers needing predictive insights on audience demand [Narrative Muse, Unknown].

The underlying technology is described as a "forward-looking" engine that uses aggregated user search data to forecast bestsellers and box office hits [GridAkl, 2020].

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Product claims are sourced from a single 2020 profile and the company's own website; technical implementation is not detailed.

Market Research and Opportunity

Narrative Muse addresses a structural shift in media consumption where audiences demand content reflecting diverse identities, but discovery tools have not kept pace. The global video streaming market size was valued at approximately $385 billion in 2021 [Grand View Research, 2022].

Metric	Value
Global Video Streaming Market (2021)	$385B
Projected Streaming Growth (2021-2028 CAGR)	21.3%

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Market sizing is based on analogous, broad industry reports. Specific TAM/SAM for the company's niche is not publicly confirmed.

Competition and Substitutes

Narrative Muse operates in a crowded field of content discovery, but its positioning is defined by a focus on identity and predictive analytics for underrepresented stories. Incumbent platforms like Netflix, Amazon, and Goodreads use vast behavioral data for broad consumption. Challenger services such as Letterboxd or StoryGraph focus on social features and user reviews. Narrative Muse’s stated wedge is curation depth for a specific audience seeking stories by women and gender-diverse creatives [GridAkl, 2020].

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Competitive positioning is inferred from company statements and general market knowledge.

Opportunity

Narrative Muse aims to become the default audience intelligence platform for producers and publishers seeking to greenlight and market content from underrepresented creators. The company's goal is to "transform the entertainment industry by connecting audiences with the best books, movies, and TV by and about women and gender diverse people" [Narrative Muse].

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Core product claims are sourced from a single 2020 article and the company's own website.

Sources

1. [GridAkl, 2020] 2020 A new narrative-'Narrative Muse' are listening and growing | https://gridakl.com/narrative-muse/
2. [Perplexity Sonar Pro Brief] Narrative Muse Brief |
3. [nzentrepreneur.co.nz] Founders’ Chat: Brough Johnson - Growing and motivating a remote team | https://nzentrepreneur.co.nz/founders-chat-brough-johnson-growing-and-motivating-a-remote-team/
4. [Crunchbase, Aug 2019] Angel Round - Narrative Muse | https://www.crunchbase.com/funding_round/narrative-muse-angel--7a2825c1
5. [Crunchbase, Mar 2023] Equity Crowdfunding - Narrative Muse | https://www.crunchbase.com/funding_round/narrative-muse-equity-crowdfunding--d12d5ccf
6. [Narrative Muse, Unknown] Mission & Team | Narrative Muse | https://info.narrativemuse.com/about
7. [Crunchbase] Narrative Muse - Crunchbase Company Profile & Funding | https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/narrative-muse
8. [GridAKL LinkedIn, Unknown] GridAKL | LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/company/gridakl
9. [nigellopezmcbean.com, Unknown] Shortlisted for FutureBook Start-up of the Year 2023 |
10. [Grand View Research, 2022] Video Streaming Market Size Report, 2022-2030 |
11. [Narrative Muse, Unknown] Narrative Muse - Where books, movies, and TV meet their audiences | https://narrativemuse.com/
12. [Public filings] Nielsen Acquires Gracenote |