LOOM

Joe Thomas, Shahed Khan, and Vinay Hiremath were frustrated by the same problem every remote worker faces — you need to explain something visual, but scheduling a meeting for a 3-minute explanation is ridiculous, and typing a long email with screenshots takes forever. They built Loom in 2015 as a Chrome extension that let you record your screen, your face, or both, and instantly generate a shareable link.

No uploading to YouTube. No file attachments.

Just record and send. The original name was OpenTest (they pivoted from a user testing tool).

The product grew slowly at first, then COVID turned every team remote and Loom usage exploded. From 2020 to 2021, Loom went from a niche tool to a mainstream communication platform used by 14 million people.

By 2023, it had 25 million registered users.

Freemium SaaS. Free plan included up to 25 videos of 5 minutes each.

Starter plan ($12.50/creator/month) added unlimited videos, longer recording, custom branding, and engagement analytics. Business plan ($12.50/creator/month billed annually) added password protection, custom CTAs, and Salesforce integration.

Enterprise added SSO, advanced admin, and compliance features. The free tier was critical for adoption — anyone could record and share a Loom without paying.

Revenue reportedly exceeded $50 million ARR before the acquisition. Under Atlassian, Loom is being bundled into Atlassian's product suite.

Screen + Cam Recording — record your screen, webcam, or both simultaneously with one click. Instant Sharing — every recording generates a shareable link instantly, no uploading or processing wait.

Viewer Insights — see who watched your video, how much they watched, and where they dropped off. Reactions & Comments — viewers can leave emoji reactions and timestamped comments on videos.

Transcription & Captions — automatic AI-powered transcription and closed captions in multiple languages. Loom AI — auto-generates titles, summaries, chapters, and action items from video content.

Video Editing — trim, stitch, and add CTAs without leaving Loom. Custom Branding — add company logos and colors to video pages.

Loom SDK — embed Loom recording capabilities into other applications. Password Protection — restrict video access with passwords or email-gated viewing.

Viral sharing loop. Every Loom video is a shareable link.

When someone receives a Loom, they see the product in action. Many recipients think "I should use this to explain things too" and sign up.

The viewer becomes a creator who creates videos seen by more viewers. This loop drove millions of sign-ups with minimal marketing spend.

Loom also targeted specific use cases with templates and guides — sales prospecting (record personalized video pitches), engineering (record bug demonstrations), product management (record feature walkthroughs), customer success (record onboarding tutorials). Each use case became a category entry point.

They later added workspace features to drive team adoption and enterprise deals.

Proving that async video was a sustainable category, not just a COVID fad. When offices reopened and hybrid work became the norm, Loom's growth decelerated.

The question became: do people actually prefer recording 3-minute videos over sending Slack messages or hopping on quick Zoom calls? For many use cases — product demos, bug reports, status updates — the answer was yes.

For casual communication, the answer was often no. The other challenge was monetization — many users were happy on the free tier and never upgraded.

Converting free users to paid was harder than expected. The $975 million Atlassian acquisition was below the $1.53 billion peak valuation, reflecting these headwinds.

Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Sequoia Capital, Kleiner Perkins, Iconiq Growth, Coatue Management. Valued at $1.53 billion in 2021.

Acquired by Atlassian for $975 million in 2023 — a down-round exit that still returned money to early investors but was a reality check from the peak valuation.