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Comp AI Funded $2.6M to Revolutionize SOC 2 Compliance

Compliance

Comp AI, a San Francisco, CA-based a pioneering startup leveraging artificial intelligence to streamline and automate the often complex and time-consuming process of SOC 2 compliance.

Comp AI was funded $2.6 million led by OSS Capital and Grand Ventures, with participation from angel investors, signals strong confidence in Comp AI’s innovative approach to tackling the challenges of security and privacy audits.

SOC 2 (System and Organization Controls 2) is a widely recognized auditing standard that evaluates the security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy of service providers’ systems. Achieving and maintaining SOC 2 compliance is crucial for businesses that handle sensitive customer data, particularly Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) companies. However, the traditional SOC 2 audit process can be arduous, involving significant manual effort, extensive documentation, and considerable cost.

Comp AI aims to disrupt this landscape by offering an AI-powered platform that automates key aspects of SOC 2 compliance. Their solution continuously monitors an organization’s systems and controls, identifies potential risks and gaps, and provides actionable recommendations to ensure adherence to SOC 2 requirements. By automating evidence collection, policy mapping, and control monitoring, Comp AI significantly reduces the time, resources, and human error associated with the compliance process.

The $2.6 million in seed funding will be used to accelerate Comp AI’s product development, expand its engineering and sales teams, and further penetrate the market. The company plans to introduce new features and integrations to its platform, making it even more comprehensive and user-friendly. This includes enhanced risk assessment capabilities, automated audit report generation, and integrations with popular security and infrastructure tools.

Industry analysts believe that Comp AI’s innovative approach addresses a significant pain point for businesses. The increasing complexity of cloud environments and the growing emphasis on data protection have made SOC 2 compliance more critical than ever. However, the traditional manual process often strains resources and diverts attention from core business objectives.

Early adopters of Comp AI’s platform have reported significant benefits, including reduced audit preparation time, improved accuracy of compliance documentation, and continuous visibility into their security and control posture. By providing proactive alerts and recommendations, Comp AI helps organizations identify and address potential issues before they lead to compliance failures.

The successful seed funding round marks a significant milestone for Comp AI and underscores the growing demand for intelligent automation solutions in the realm of compliance. As businesses increasingly rely on cloud services and handle sensitive data, platforms like Comp AI are poised to play a crucial role in simplifying the complex landscape of regulatory requirements and fostering a stronger culture of security and trust. Comp AI is positioned to leverage the burgeoning tech talent in the region as it embarks on its mission to revolutionize SOC 2 compliance for businesses worldwide.

By: K. Tagura

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Startup Spark: From Vision to Funding with Angel Power

Vision

Every groundbreaking enterprise begins with a spark – a bold vision that ignites the entrepreneurial spirit. But transforming that vision into a tangible, thriving business requires more than just passion; it demands resources, strategic guidance, and often, crucial early-stage capital. This is where the “angel power” comes in, as angel investors play a pivotal role in nurturing nascent startups from their nascent stages to the cusp of significant growth.

The Genesis: Nurturing Your Vision and Defining Your Purpose

Before any talk of funding, a startup needs a crystal-clear vision. This isn’t merely a fleeting idea; it’s the “North Star” that will guide every decision and action. Think beyond profitability and focus on the impact you want to make. What problem are you solving? What unique value are you bringing to the market?

Developing this vision involves:

  • Identifying the Core Problem: Deeply understand the pain point your product or service addresses. This requires thorough market research and a keen understanding of your target audience.
  • Crafting a Unique Solution: How does you’re offering uniquely solve this problem, better than existing alternatives? This is your unique value proposition (UVP).
  • Defining Your Mission and Values: These form the DNA of your organization, attracting like-minded team members and resonating with potential customers and investors. A compelling mission statement articulates your purpose, while core values define your operational principles.
  • Understanding Your Market: Beyond the immediate problem, what is the total addressable market (TAM)? How big is the opportunity? Investors want to see scalable potential.

A well-defined vision provides direction, fosters internal alignment, and becomes a compelling story to share with the world, especially with potential investors.

From Idea to Execution: The Pre-Seed and Seed Stages

Once the vision is clear, the journey typically progresses through several stages, each with its own funding needs:

  • Pre-Seed Stage: This is the very beginning, where founders are refining their idea, conducting initial market research, and perhaps developing a basic proof-of-concept. Funding at this stage often comes from personal savings, friends, and family.
  • Seed Stage: At this point, the startup has usually launched a prototype or minimum viable product (MVP), is building its initial customer base, and is actively seeking external funding to further develop the product, validate market fit, and make initial key hires. This is where angel investors become incredibly vital.

The Power of Angels: More Than Just Money

Angel investors are high-net-worth individuals who invest their personal capital into early-stage companies, typically in exchange for equity or convertible debt. While their financial contribution is crucial, their “power” extends far beyond just capital.

What Angel Investors Bring to the Table:

  • Early-Stage Capital: Angels bridge the gap between initial founder/friends-and-family capital and larger institutional funding rounds (like Series A from Venture Capitalists). They are often willing to invest when a startup only has an idea or a nascent prototype, taking on higher risk.
  • Mentorship and Expertise: Many angel investors are successful entrepreneurs or seasoned industry veterans themselves. They bring invaluable experience, offering guidance on strategy, product development, market positioning, and navigating early-stage challenges.
  • Network Access: A good angel investor opens doors. They often have extensive networks of potential customers, strategic partners, future investors, and talent, significantly accelerating a startup’s growth.
  • Faster Decision-Making: Unlike larger VC firms, individual angel investors can often make investment decisions more quickly, which can be critical for fast-moving startups.
  • Credibility and Validation: An angel investment can act as a stamp of approval, signaling to other investors and the market that your startup has potential and is worth considering.

Angels are deeply invested in the success of the startups they back, often taking a proactive role in helping founders achieve key milestones and de-risk the business for future funding.

Attracting Angel Power: Crafting Your Pitch

Securing angel investment is a competitive process that requires a strategic approach and a compelling presentation.

Key Strategies to Attract Angel Investors:

  1. Do Your Homework: Research potential investors. Understand their investment focus, portfolio companies, and what industries or stages they typically invest in. Tailor your approach to their interests.
  2. Build a Strong Network: Attend startup events, pitch competitions, and industry conferences. Engage with online communities like AngelList and LinkedIn. Networking is about building relationships, not just transactional asks. Focus on offering value and fostering genuine connections.
  3. Develop a Solid Business Plan: While not a static document, a clear business plan demonstrates your understanding of the market, your strategy, and your financial projections. It’s your roadmap to growth.
  4. Create a Persuasive Pitch Deck: This is your primary tool for making a strong first impression. It should be concise (10-15 slides is ideal), visually appealing, and tell a compelling story.

Essential Components of an Angel Investor Pitch Deck:

  • Cover Slide: Company name, logo, and a memorable tagline.
  • Executive Summary: A brief, high-level overview of your business.
  • Problem Statement: Clearly articulate the pain point you’re addressing.
  • Solution & Product Overview: How your product/service solves the problem, with visuals.
  • Market Opportunity: Data-driven insights into TAM, SAM, and SOM.
  • Business Model: How you will generate revenue (revenue streams, pricing).
  • Traction: Proof points of progress (users, sales, partnerships, waitlists).
  • Competitive Landscape: Analysis of competitors and your unique differentiation.
  • Go-to-Market Strategy: How you will acquire customers.
  • Team: Highlight the experience and expertise of your founding team.
  • Financial Projections: Realistic forecasts of revenue, expenses, and profitability.
  • Funding Request & Use of Funds: Exactly how much you’re seeking and how it will be deployed.
  • Closing Slide: Contact information and a clear call to action.

Practice your pitch relentlessly, anticipate questions, and be prepared to articulate your vision, strategy, and team’s capabilities with confidence and passion.

The Journey Continues: Beyond the Angel Round

Securing angel funding is a significant milestone, but it’s just one step in the entrepreneurial journey. Angel investment typically provides the runway for a startup to achieve critical milestones, such as product-market fit, significant user growth, or early revenue. These achievements then position the company for subsequent, larger funding rounds from venture capitalists or other institutional investors.

The “Startup Spark” ignites with a powerful vision, and “Angel Power” often provides the crucial fuel to transform that vision into a blazing success. By understanding the role of angel investors, meticulously preparing your pitch, and building genuine relationships, you can significantly increase your chances of attracting the capital and mentorship needed to launch and scale your dream enterprise.

Who we are: Funded.com is a platform that is A+ BBB accredited over 10+ years. Access our network of Angel Investors, Venture Capital or Lenders. Let us professionally write your Business Plan.

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Legion Funded $38M for AI Security Revolution

AI Security

Legion, a NYC-based in a significant leap forward for cybersecurity, Legion, an innovative AI Security Operations Center (SOC) platform.

Legion was funded $38M in combined seed and Series A funding. This considerable investment, led by Coatue with participation from Accel and Picture Capital, alongside angel investors from tech giants like Google, CrowdStrike, and Wiz, positions Legion at the forefront of a new era in AI-driven security.

The cybersecurity landscape is grappling with an escalating volume of threats and a critical shortage of skilled personnel, leading to widespread alert fatigue and inefficient response times. Traditional AI-driven SOCs often require complex integrations and struggle to adapt to unique organizational environments, limiting their effectiveness and trust among security teams. Legion addresses these fundamental challenges with a groundbreaking, browser-native AI SOC companion designed to revolutionize how security operations are conducted.

“Most AI-driven SOCs still require complex integrations, and even then, they fail to adapt to each organization’s unique environment, making them difficult for enterprise teams to fully trust,” stated Ely Abramovitch, co-founder and CEO of Legion. “Legion is the first browser-based platform designed to scale your team’s best instincts into AI-driven workflows. It’s fully trained within your environment, by your team, for your team. Our goal is to turn your expertise into scalable automation, letting the security team focus on what’s really important.”

What sets Legion apart is its unique approach to learning and automation. The platform utilizes vision models and a lightweight browser extension to observe and record security analyst workflows in real-time. This includes everything from triaging simple alerts to conducting complex investigations, meticulously capturing the decision-making processes of top-performing analysts. This “tribal knowledge” is then converted into automated models that can be executed at scale, on demand, and without the need for cumbersome integrations or APIs.

Legion’s innovative system operates in three modes: Learning Mode, where it passively observes and organizes knowledge; Guided Mode, where it runs entire workflows through analysts’ browsers, maintaining human oversight; and Autonomous Mode, where it proactively investigates and responds to threats 24/7, only involving human teams when necessary. This flexibility allows organizations to gradually embrace automation at their own pace, ensuring a seamless transition and fostering trust in the AI’s capabilities.

The impact of Legion’s platform is already being felt across various sectors. The company is actively collaborating with Fortune 500 enterprises in critical industries such as energy, healthcare, and finance. Early adopters have reported remarkable results, including a significant reduction in investigation and response times—some by as much as 90%. In some instances, organizations have been able to fully internalize their SOC operations with Legion, eliminating the need for external headcount, while in others, Legion’s automation has provided the equivalent capacity of several additional analysts without new hires.

Founded in 2024 by security veterans Ely Abramovitch (CEO), Michael Gladishev (VP R&D), and Eyal Fisher (CTO)—alumni of Microsoft Sentinel and Cambridge AI research—Legion’s leadership brings a deep understanding of the challenges plaguing modern security operations. Their collective experience has informed the development of a platform that directly addresses issues such as tool proliferation, process complexity, and talent shortages.

The $38 million funding infusion will enable Legion to further accelerate its research and development efforts, expand its team, and scale its reach to a broader market. With cyber threats becoming increasingly sophisticated and the demand for robust security solutions at an all-time high, Legion’s browser-native AI SOC platform promises to be a game-changer, empowering security teams to work more efficiently, reduce burnout, and ultimately, safeguard critical assets with unprecedented precision and speed. The revolution in AI security has officially begun, and Legion is leading the charge.

By: K. Tagura

Who we are: Funded.com is a platform that is A+ BBB accredited over 10+ years. Access our network of Angel Investors, Venture Capital or Lenders. Let us professionally write your Business Plan.

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Nexxa.ai Funded $4.4M to Revolutionize Heavy Industries with Specialized AI

Specialized AI

Nexxa.ai, a Sunnyvale, CA-based, a trailblazing AI-native company, has announced a successful $4.4 million pre-seed funding round, spearheaded by a16z Speedrun. This significant investment is poised to accelerate Nexxa.ai’s mission to embed highly specialized AI agents into the core operations of heavy industries, from manufacturing and energy to mining and logistics. The funding signals a strong belief in Nexxa.ai’s innovative approach to tackling complex industrial challenges with intelligent automation.

Heavy industries, long the backbone of global economies, are grappling with an urgent need for digital transformation. Faced with increasing regulatory pressures, evolving investor expectations, sustainability mandates, and intricate operational complexities, traditional methods are often insufficient. While the promise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has loomed large, its widespread adoption in these sectors has been hampered by unique obstacles: fragmented legacy systems, a shortage of specialized AI expertise, and the sheer complexity of industrial processes that demand a nuanced understanding beyond general-purpose AI.

This is precisely where Nexxa.ai steps in. The company is developing specialized AI agents designed to seamlessly integrate with existing industrial software and support engineers in executing highly technical tasks. Unlike broad AI solutions, Nexxa.ai’s platform is built to understand and learn the intricacies of industrial operations from the ground up, enabling AI agents to either collaborate with human engineers or autonomously assist them. This “Full Self Computing” approach aims to streamline business processes through cognitive Robotic Process Automation (RPA), offering a pay-per-use model that eliminates upfront costs and provides unparalleled flexibility and scalability for businesses of all sizes.

The $4.4 million pre-seed round, which saw participation from Augment Ventures, Propeller Ventures, Plug and Play, Beat Ventures, SBI, Untapped Ventures, Cross Atlantic Angels, and prominent angel investors Rick Berry and Pat McCarthy, will be instrumental in Nexxa.ai’s strategic expansion. The funds will be primarily allocated to growing its engineering team, accelerating the development of its specialized AI capabilities, and scaling its solutions into additional industrial sectors.

The impact of specialized AI in heavy industries cannot be overstated. From predictive maintenance that anticipates equipment failures and drastically reduces downtime, to enhanced quality control through machine vision systems that detect defects imperceptible to the human eye, AI is already demonstrating its transformative power. In logistics, AI-driven solutions are revolutionizing demand forecasting, optimizing intricate supply chains, and streamlining transportation routes for greater efficiency and reduced environmental impact.

However, the path to widespread AI adoption in these sectors is fraught with challenges. Data quality and fragmentation remain significant hurdles, as does the often-cited “skills gap” within the workforce. Integrating new AI systems with decades-old legacy infrastructure can be a technical and logistical nightmare. Furthermore, measuring the exact return on investment (ROI) for complex AI projects can be elusive, making executive buy-in difficult.

Nexxa.ai’s focus on “specialized AI” directly addresses many of these pain points. By developing AI agents that speak the language of industrial engineers and understand the nuances of specific equipment and workflows, the company aims to overcome the integration barriers and accelerate the realization of tangible value. Their emphasis on integrating with legacy industrial software is a critical differentiator, acknowledging the realities of deeply entrenched operational systems.

Looking ahead, the future of AI in heavy industries is bright, with specialized solutions like those offered by Nexxa.ai paving the way for unprecedented efficiency, safety, and sustainability. As industries continue to navigate an increasingly complex global landscape, the ability to leverage intelligent automation that is finely tuned to their unique demands will not just be a competitive advantage, but a necessity for long-term resilience and growth. Nexxa.ai’s successful funding round positions it at the forefront of this crucial industrial revolution, promising to unlock new levels of productivity and innovation for the sectors that power our world.

By: K. Tagura

Who we are: Funded.com is a platform that is A+ BBB accredited over 10+ years. Access our network of Angel Investors, Venture Capital or Lenders. Let us professionally write your Business Plan.

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Collate Funded $10M to Unleash Enterprise Data Intelligence

Data Intelligence

Collate, the Menlo Park, CA-based the innovative company behind the rapidly growing open-source project OpenMetadata, announced that it was successfully funded $10 million in Series A funding. The round, led by Venrock with participation from strategic angel investors from Unusual Ventures and Karman Ventures, positions Collate to significantly accelerate its mission of solving complex data intelligence challenges for enterprise customers.

Despite massive investments in data platforms, businesses globally continue to grapple with extracting full value from their data and AI initiatives. The explosion of data and diverse tools has led to pervasive data silos, fragmentation, and a fundamental disconnect between business and technical teams. Issues such as a lack of trust in data due to quality concerns, and manual, fragmented tooling that stifles productivity, are rampant across organizations. Collate aims to directly address these pain points with its AI-powered platform for “agentic data intelligence.”

Suresh Srinivas CEO of Collate stated, Collate’s Series A couldn’t come at a more critical time, they’re during an AI race — not just for getting data ready for AI, but for how AI itself helps prepare that data. The winners will be organizations with highly functioning data teams augmented by AI.

Collate’s platform, built on the open-source core of OpenMetadata, provides a unified solution for data discovery, observability, and governance. OpenMetadata itself has seen phenomenal growth, boasting over 9,800 members and a 3,000% increase in community engagement, a testament to its relevance and utility within the data ecosystem. The recent $10,000 grant from Bloomberg’s FOSS Contributor Fund further underscores its importance to the open-source community.

The new capital infusion will be strategically deployed across several key areas to fuel Collate’s growth and innovation. A significant portion will go towards accelerating the OpenMetadata community, fostering further collaboration and development. Collate also plans to expand its engineering investment in AI agent development, enhancing the platform’s ability to automate tasks and drive collaboration for data teams. Furthermore, the funding will scale go-to-market operations for both enterprise and cloud-native organizations, and bolster customer success services, particularly for Fortune 500 customers.

Collate’s leadership team, including CEO Suresh Srinivas and CTO Sriharsha Chintalapani, brings extensive experience in modern data infrastructure. Their backgrounds include significant contributions to industry-standard tools like Apache Hadoop and Apache Kafka, and leadership roles at companies such as Hortonworks and Uber, where they were instrumental in shaping data cultures. Their vision for Collate is centered on delivering AI-powered data discovery, observability, and governance through a Unified Knowledge Graph, a democratized user experience, and open-source technologies.

Enterprise customers frequently encounter challenges related to poor data quality, lack of data awareness, and the sheer complexity of managing vast and disparate data ecosystems. Collate’s platform directly tackles these issues by providing a single source of truth for data sources, pipelines, and products. With over 90 data connectors, its solution enables seamless search, facet, and preview capabilities across an organization’s entire data estate, fostering collaboration and empowering data practitioners.

The impact of robust data intelligence on enterprise strategy is profound. Companies no longer just compete on products or price, but on actionable, timely insights derived from well-structured and understood data. Collate’s “agentic approach,” uniquely powered by richer metadata context from its knowledge graph and open-source core, is designed to solve these “last-mile” data challenges, enabling enterprises to innovate faster with AI and data. This investment marks a significant step forward in making advanced data intelligence accessible and actionable for businesses striving for a truly data-driven future.

By: K. Tagura

Who we are: Funded.com is a platform that is A+ BBB accredited over 10+ years. Access our network of Angel Investors, Venture Capital or Lenders. Let us professionally write your Business Plan.

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Parspec Funded $20M to Modernize Construction Procurement

Construction

Parspec, a San Mateo, CA-based developer of an artificial intelligence platform designed to serve the supply chain for the building and construction industry. The company’s platform provides information and online workflows to support the selection and sale of construction products by leveraging artificial intelligence to create a submittal instantly, enabling sales agents and distributors to author and manage product submittals online hassle-free.

Parspec was funded $20 million led by Threshold Ventures (formerly DFJ), with participation from existing venture investors including Innovation Endeavors, Building Ventures, Heartland Ventures, and other strategic angel investors from Hometeam Ventures.

The global construction materials industry, valued at around $5 trillion, remains highly fragmented comprised of manufacturers, distributors, sales reps, and contractors. Parspec targets this complexity with AI-driven tools that streamline specification discovery, quoting, and procurement workflows. Using advanced vertical AI, Parspec’s platform enables users to match project specifications with suitable materials in seconds.

Ahead of this round, Parspec has seen impressive momentum:

  • 200+ customers live on the platform
  • Over $10 billion in materials quoted
  • 4× year-over-year revenue growth

These metrics reflect strong adoption and effectiveness in automating traditionally manual and error-prone procurement processes.

With fresh capital on board, Parspec plans to expand its AI offerings and deepen its footprint across the construction ecosystem:

  • New AI features spanning the full project-order lifecycle
  • Enhanced collaboration tools for contractors, agents, distributors, and manufacturers
  • Continued scaling of its customer base domestically and internationally

Threshold Ventures principals Mo Islam and Josh Stein will also be joining the company’s board, strengthening its ties with strategic industry partners.

Construction tech startups have attracted significant investor attention recently. The space has seen companies like HammerTech and Higharc secure Series B rounds ranging from $50 million to $75 million. Parspec’s $20 million raise places it firmly within the Series A growth stage, positioning it as a strong contender in a rapidly evolving sector.

Why This Matters

  1. Combatting fragmentation
    Construction materials supply chains are notoriously disjointed—with data often siloed across stakeholders. Parspec seeks to unify this with a centralized, intelligent platform.
  2. Improving accuracy and speed
    Manual product specification is prone to delays and errors. AI helps accelerate quoting and ensures better compliance with project requirements.
  3. Driving digital transformation
    With only a minority of materials procurement workflows fully digitized, Parspec’s momentum validates the demand for automation and AI in construction.

Outlook & Growth Trajectory

  • Parspec will channel the new funding into product innovation, scaling efforts, and partnership formation.
  • Continued customer acquisition is expected, especially across contractors and manufacturers seeking efficiency gains.
  • International expansion, though not explicitly announced, is a logical next step—especially as supply chains become more globalized.

Parspec’s $20 million Series A marks a pivotal moment in construction technology: its AI-first approach tackles persistent inefficiencies in supply chains head-on. With robust growth metrics and backing from top-tier investors, the company is well-positioned to scale and reshape procurement workflows across the industry.

As AI becomes increasingly central to industrial transformation, Parspec’s solution not only promises cost and time savings—it could fundamentally change how construction projects source and manage materials.

By: K. Tagura

Who we are: Funded.com is a platform that is A+ BBB accredited over 10+ years. Access our network of Angel Investors, Venture Capital or Lenders. Let us professionally write your Business Plan.

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Paraform Funded $20M to Empower Recruiters Over AI in Hiring Marketplace

recruiters

Paraform is a San Francisco, CA-based developer of a recruiting platform intended to connect companies with specialized recruiters. The company’s platform provides a platform for connecting with companies and businesses, referring candidates to job opportunities with specialized recruiters at a lower cost, and monitoring their performance to adjust flexibly based on demand. This enables individuals to find jobs through a digital portal at their desired startups and companies.

Paraform was funded $20 million led by Felicis, with participation from A*, BOND, DST Global, Liquid 2, and angel investors, including the co-founders of Canva, Instacart, YouTube, and xAI, along with Shyam Sankar, Harley Finklestein, Mark Pincus, and others.

The company intends to utilize the funds to scale its platform to meet the demand of startups and enterprises alike, deepen product development, and expand its global community of recruiters.

In a landscape saturated with generative AI tools for recruitment—automating resume parsing, outreach, and even interviews—Paraform is making a bold, contrarian bet: human recruiters, not AI, should steer the hiring process.

Jason Rumney, a top recruiter on Paraform’s network, explains that recruiting platforms today use AI to replace recruiters, but Paraform uses it to empower them. Paraform streamlines the busywork, allowing them to focus on what drives results – building relationships and closing critical hires.

Paraform’s CEO and co-founder, John Kim, likens elite recruiters on the platform to sports agents: strategic figures who navigate complex negotiations and advocate for talent. The company’s proposition: equip recruiters with powerful AI tools—call transcription, CRM automation, candidate matching—while leaving key decisions firmly in human hands.

John Kim notes that AI cannot evaluate soft skills, predict team dynamics, or assess whether a candidate will make a meaningful contribution to long-term success. Paraform is betting that these human judgments differentiate a good hire from a transformative one.

Currently connecting high-growth startups and enterprises—such as Palantir, Cursor, Windsurf, Decagon, and Hightouch—with independent recruiters and boutique search firms; Paraform boasts placements 3 times faster than traditional agencies.

The Series A funds will support:

  • Expansion of its global recruiter community
  • Enhanced product development, including deeper AI workflow tools and CRM systems
  • Scaling to address surging demand from both early-stage and enterprise customers

Paraform’s rise occurs amid a broader boom in AI recruiting. While many startups chase fully automated hiring, a growing segment emphasizes human-centric workflows. A mid-year survey from Staffing Industry Analysts found that AI is best suited for specific tasks rather than full-scale role replacement—suggesting fertile ground for platforms like Paraform.

Post‑funding, Paraform has also made strategic acquisitions, such as Styx—a sourcing tool that enhances AI-driven candidate fit by pulling signals from GitHub and Stack Overflow. Already, 25% of candidate-interview matches on Paraform are AI-suggested—a hybrid approach that enables faster and more informed selection.

Paraform’s fresh war chest—$20 million—marks a clear investment in people over AI, utilizing technology to amplify human hiring expertise, not replace it. As AI continues to reshape HR, Paraform asserts that a recruiter-first model can offer a competitive edge, providing faster placements, a stronger candidate-company fit, and outcomes that AI alone cannot deliver.

By: K. Tagura

Who we are: Funded.com is a platform that is A+ BBB accredited over 10+ years. Access our network of Angel Investors, Venture Capital or Lenders. Let us professionally write your Business Plan.

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Extend Funded $17M to Develop AI Document Automation Cloud

Document

Extend is an NYC-based operator of internet extension document tools intended to provide powered workflows inside existing tools. The company specializes in reducing context switching, eliminating the need for copy and pasting, increasing the capacity of existing tools, and automating ticket workflows, enabling clients to customize websites without hiring a salesforce administrator.

Extend was funded with $17 million led by Innovation Endeavors, with participation from Y Combinator, Homebrew, Character, and angel investors, including Scott Belsky (former Chief Strategy Officer of Adobe) and Guillermo Rauch (CEO of Vercel).

Revolutionizing Document Intelligence

Historically, companies relied on legacy OCR systems and fragmented integrations to extract data from PDFs, scans, handwriting, and tables—but accuracy often suffers, and pipeline development can drag on for months. Extend positions itself as a full-stack document processing cloud, combining advanced LLM-powered parsing, precise extraction, pipeline orchestration, schema generation, and human-in-the-loop tools—all under one umbrella.

The startup claims 95%+ accuracy across a variety of document types, even degraded or handwritten content, and is already cash-flow positive with multi-million-dollar annual recurring revenue—surpassing all prior seed funding before closing this latest round.

“We’ve seen remarkable momentum over the past year, and this funding allows us to double down on our mission of helping ambitious teams unlock the full potential of their unstructured documents,” said Kushal Byatnal, co-founder and CEO.

Further highlighting their strength in the market:

Pedro Franceschi, CEO of Brex, reported Extend “outperformed every solution we tested—including other vendors, open source and even foundation models” and now supports document workflows for Brex’s 30,000 users.

Eli Badgio, co-founder and CTO, noted that the platform reduces time-to-production from months to just days, thanks to its LLM foundation and robust developer and operator tooling.

Davis Treybig, Partner at Innovation Endeavors, praised Extend’s “full-stack approach,” which empowers teams to both automate existing workflows and build innovative internal features for a competitive advantage.

Two New Features: Sandbox Mode & Automated Config

With this round closed, Extend is rolling out two significant enhancements:

Sandbox Mode: a self-serve trial environment enabling developers and business users to upload documents and test workflows immediately—no setup required.

Automated Config Generation (beta): eliminates manual schema configuration and prompts engineering by auto-generating custom schemas from sample documents. Future updates will add a computerized loop that continuously refines configuration based on evaluation feedback.

In Tehrani.com’s coverage, the feature rollout further underscores Extend’s advantage, as it surfaces as a 95%+ accurate, LLM-driven platform capable of processing complex PDFs into structured, production-ready data.

A Strong Roster of Clients

Extend claims adoption by major brands across industries—including Brex, Square, Checkr, Flatiron Health, and numerous Fortune 500 companies—that rely on the platform to manage millions of documents daily with high accuracy.

These clients span sectors where data precision is mission-critical, including fintech, healthcare, logistics, insurance, and more, all seeking reliable transformation from unstructured sources to validated data.

Market Context: The Document Cloud Frontier

While cloud platforms for computing, storage, and collaboration are commonplace, Extend touts itself as a pioneer in the largely untapped document processing cloud space—a specialized layer built to handle the complexity of unstructured enterprise data at scale.

As enterprises accelerate digital transformation, scrappy startups and incumbents alike are betting heavily on AI to tame messy data assets. Extend’s seamless tie-ins—schema-free ingestion, automated pipelines, and pilot-to-production tooling—position it for a potential breakout in a rising market.

By: K. Tagura

Who we are: Funded.com is a platform that is A+ BBB accredited over 10+ years. Access our network of Angel Investors, Venture Capital or Lenders. Let us professionally write your Business Plan.

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Guardz Funded $56M to Boost MSP Cybersecurity with AI-Driven Platform

Cybersecurity

Guardz, a Miami, FL-based cybersecurity startup, was funded $56 million, bringing its total capital to $84 million, in just over two years. The round was led by ClearSky, with participation from Phoenix Financial and existing investors, including SentinelOne, Glilot, Hanaco Ventures, and strategic angel investors from iAngels, GKFF Ventures, and Lumir, among others.

Founded in 2022 by Dor Eisner (ex-IntSights) and Alon Lavi (ex-Argus Cyber Security), Guardz emerged from stealth in early 2023 with a mission to safeguard small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) via their MSP partners. Their AI-native unified cybersecurity platform integrates identity, endpoint, email, cloud, and data protection into a single engine—powered by 24/7 managed detection and response (MDR) that blends AI-driven automation with expert-led threat hunting.

By consolidating multiple point tools into one cohesive system, Guardz significantly reduces MSP workload and alert fatigue. The company cites internal research showing that 77% of MSPs struggle with fragmented security solutions, hampering responsiveness and efficiency.

SMBs have long been overlooked by sophisticated attackers due to their limited resources; however, the advent of automated cybercrime and generative AI tools has dramatically shifted that dynamic. Guardz addresses this by enabling MSPs—the frontline defense for many SMBs—to offer enterprise-grade cybersecurity with simplified deployment, real-time threat mitigation, built-in compliance, and even cyber insurance coverage.

The company intends to use the funds to Expand U.S. operations, Deepen R&D in AI-native automation, Accelerate go-to-market efforts, and Strengthen platform integrations.

As cyber threats become increasingly automated and identity-centric, small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are becoming just as attractive targets as large enterprises. MSPs—often with limited resources—are caught in the crossfire. Guardz’s strategy to unify tools with AI-backed MDR addresses this pain point head-on, positioning MSPs as growth enablers, not just service providers.

With its latest $56 million infusion, Guardz is poised to accelerate a new wave of cybersecurity solutions designed for SMBs via MSPs. By combining AI-native automation, identity-forward detection, unified controls, and regulatory readiness, Guardz aims to become the cybersecurity backbone for the global small to medium-sized business (SMB) sector.

This round marks a pivotal milestone in Guardz’s journey—signaling a transformative step in how Managed Service Providers (MSPs) secure and scale managed services.

By: K. Tagura

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Canid Funded $10M to Transform Pediatric Vaccine Management

Vaccine

Canid, a NYC-based, developer of a healthcare dashboard and process tool intended to simplify vaccination record management. The company’s tool offers administrative consulting, secures vaccine margins, automates your vaccine workflow, and oversees vaccine inventory, enabling state officials and pediatric practitioners to focus on their day-to-day practice.

Canid was funded $10 million led by Telescope Partners with participation from FJ Labs, Brooklyn Bridge Ventures, SeedtoB and other strategic angel investors. The new funding aims to expand Canid’s innovative vaccine management platform across ten additional U.S. states and enhance tools for managing pediatric vaccine patient populations.

Founded in 2020 by CEO Pedro Sanchez de Lozada, Canid offers an end-to-end solution designed to alleviate the administrative burdens associated with vaccine management in pediatric practices. The platform automates various aspects of vaccine operations, including purchasing, billing, inventory tracking, and patient outreach, allowing healthcare providers to focus more on patient care.

Sanchez de Lozada commented the vaccinations have been taken for granted for decades. They’re the #1 most valuable public health tool we have as a society, and yet they’re always the last priority for our healthcare system. Their goal at Canid is to change that. By eliminating the burden out of giving and receiving vaccines, they hope to make it exciting again to take part.

Canid’s platform addresses critical challenges faced by pediatricians, such as the financial strain of vaccine procurement and the complexity of insurance reimbursements. By purchasing vaccines on behalf of practices and managing billing processes, Canid ensures that providers receive full compensation for their services. The system also automates inventory management, reducing the risk of stockouts or overstocking, and facilitates the organization of mass vaccination clinics through an integrated scheduling feature.

The recent funding will support Canid’s expansion into new markets, particularly in the Southwest and Midwest regions of the United States. The company plans to leverage this growth to improve vaccination rates and public health outcomes by providing practices with tools to identify under-vaccinated children and streamline patient outreach campaigns.

As Canid continues to grow, its mission remains focused on supporting independent pediatric practices by reducing administrative burdens and enhancing the efficiency of vaccine delivery. By doing so, the company aims to ensure that children receive timely vaccinations, ultimately contributing to better public health outcomes.

By: K. Tagura

Who we are: Funded.com is a platform that is A+ BBB accredited over 10+ years. Access our network of Angel Investors, Venture Capital or Lenders. Let us professionally write your Business Plan.