Enterprise Weekly #548: Everything Conversation Starts with AI, NYC Tech Poker, and More
Work-Bench is a NYC-based $160M enterprise software Seed stage VC fund. If you are or know anyone thinking about founding an enterprise software, SaaS, or infrastructure software startup - we’d love to meet! Please reach out to chat.
Every conversation we’re having right now starts with AI (the why isn’t hard to see). The shifts we’re seeing are reshaping everything from the application layer down through infrastructure, security, and the connective tissue of governance in between. As enterprise investors, we care about the full picture: people, processes, technology, and how it all fits together. It’s energizing and disorienting in equal measure.
To make sense of it, we’ve been building frameworks (our favorite pastime). In our latest research, The Rise of Agent Runtime, we argue that AI agents are outgrowing the infrastructure built for traditional software. Getting agents into production is one thing; keeping them safe, accountable, and continuously improving once they’re there is an entirely different problem surface. We break down the four pillars of the emerging agent runtime stack—execute, constrain, observe, improve—and map the vendors positioned across each.
If you’re thinking through agents or already have them in production, we’d love to connect!
♠️ NYC Tech Poker Night with Work-Bench and Courier Health (Feb 24th): Work-Bench and Courier Health are hosting a fun, poker night for NYC founders and operators. This will be an intimate 30-person event. Sign up to play here!
📚 Read more news:
TechCrunch: A new version of OpenAI’s Codex is powered by a new dedicated chip
VentureBeat: AI inference costs dropped up to 10x on Nvidia’s Blackwell — but hardware is only half the equation
CNBC: Cisco stock has worst day since 2022 as memory prices pressure margins
Reuters: For stock market, AI turns from lifting all boats to sinking ships
🧵 Read more threads:
Jessica Lin: The Importance of Ambitious Vision for Founders
Proby Shandilya: The Rise of the Agent Runtime
Steve Kalinski: Stripe’s One-Shot, End-to-End Coding Agents
Roseanne Wincek: AI is Eating Software
Peter Walker: Graduating from Seed to A is Hard
Company: AIR Platforms
Role: Founding AE
Technology: AI-Powered Credit Ratings
Funding: $6M from Work-Bench, Lerer Hippeau
🌟 Company of the Week 🌟
Meridian raises $17M led by A16z and General Partnership
Future of Work • Seed • New York, NY
Founders: Zach Kirshner, John Ling
ZeroDrift raises $2M led by a16z
Risk / Security • Pre-Seed • New York, NY
Cydelphi raises $3M led by Glasswing Ventures
Risk / Security • Seed • Dallas, TX
Seamflow raises $4.5M led by Northzone and Initialized Capital
Infrastructure / Dev Tools • Seed • London, UK
Hubbl Technologies raises $6M led by Salesforce Ventures
Data / AI / Machine Learning • Series A • Vancouver, Canada
Manufact raises $6.3M led by Peak XV
Infrastructure / Dev Tools • Seed • San Francisco, CA
Dono raises $6.5M led by Link Ventures
Future of Work • Seed • West Palm Beach, FL
Scala raises $8.5M led by Madrona and FUSE
Future of Work • Seed • Seattle, WA
Modveon raises $10M led by Coinbase Ventures and Firebolt Ventures
Future of Work • Seed • Palo Alto, CA
Simple AI raises $14M led by First Harmonic
Sales / Marketing • Seed • San Francisco, CA
Reflow raises $15M led by Bling Capital and Basis Set Ventures
Collaboration / Productivity • Seed • San Francisco, CA
WINN.AI raises $18M led by Insight Partners, Mangusta Capital, and S Capital
Sales / Marketing • Series A • Tel Aviv, Israel
Backslash Security raises $19M led by Kompas VC
Risk / Security • Series A • Tel Aviv, Israel
Complyance raises $20M led by GV
Risk / Security • Series A • New York, NY
Nucleus Security raises $20M led by Delta-v Capital
Risk / Security • Series C • Sarasota, FL
Matia raises $21M led by Red Dot Capital
Data / AI / Machine Learning • Series A • Miami, FL
Lema AI raises $24M led by Team8
Risk / Security • Series A • New York, NY
Brandlight raises $30M led by Pelion Venture Partners
Sales / Marketing • Series A • New York, NY
Reco raises $30M led by Zeev Ventures
Risk / Security • Series B • New York, NY
Monaco raises $35M led by Founders Fund
Sales / Marketing • Seed & Series A • San Francisco, CA
GitGuardian raises $50M led by Insight Partners
Risk / Security • Series C • Paris, France
Entire raises $60M led by Felicis
Infrastructure / Dev Tools • Seed • San Francisco, CA
Bretton AI raises $75M led by Sapphire Ventures
Risk / Security • Series B • San Francisco, CA
Vega raises $120M led by Accel
Risk / Security • Series B • New York, NY
Oxide Computer raises $200M led by the U.S. Innovative Technology Fund
Infrastructure / Dev Tools • Series C • Emeryville, CA
Nebius acquires Tavily for $275M
Infrastructure / Dev Tools • Acquisition • New York, NY
Thomson Reuters acquires Noetica AI for an Undisclosed Amount
Data / AI / Machine Learning • Acquisition • New York, NY
Sophos acquires Arco Cyber for an Undisclosed Amount
Risk / Security • Acquisition • London, UK
Phenom acquires Be Applied for an Undisclosed Amount
HR Tech • Acquisition • London, UK