Accelerate Productivity in 2025

Reignite Growth Despite the Global Slowdown

Executive Summary: List of Fastest Growing Companies to Watch [2026]

  1. Anthropic (USA): LLM Platform for Research & Data Analysis
  2. Scale AI (USA): Full-Stack AI Infrastructure Platform
  3. KnowBe4 (USA): Human Risk Management Platform
  4. Perplexity (USA): Generative AI Search Engine
  5. Airwallex (Singapore): Global Payment & Embedded Finance Solutions
  6. Aspire (Singapore): Financial Operating System & Corporate Cards
  7. Liquid Death (USA): Sustainable Canned Water
  8. Shiprocket (India): eCommerce Logistics & Fulfillment
  9. Preply (USA): Online Language Learning Platform
  10. Airbyte (USA): Open-Source Data Integration Engine
  11. Airalo (Singapore): Digital eSIM Marketplace
  12. Deepgram (USA): Voice AI Platform
  13. ATOME (UK): Low-Carbon Fertilizer Production
  14. Printify (USA): Print-on-Demand Platform
  15. AALTO HAPS (UK): High Altitude Platform Station
  16. Middesk (USA): Customer Identity Verification & Onboarding
  17. Renalys (Japan): Therapeutics for Renal Diseases
  18. SAFCO Microfinance Company (India): Finance Services for Low-income Households
  19. LeadIQ (USA): AI-Powered Sales Intelligence Platform
  20. Tailwind (USA): Social Media Management Software
  21. Gumroad (USA): eCommerce Platform for Creators
  22. Fathom (USA): AI Assistant for Meeting Transcription & Summarization
  23. ZeroTier (USA): Software-Defined Global Networking Platform
  24. Swoove Studios (Belgium): 3D Animation App
  25. Zumrails (Canada): Payment Gateway Integration
  26. Quantile Health (Canada): AI Assistant for Drug Commercialization
  27. Matter Intelligence (USA): Sensor Infrastructure Development
  28. Depet (Spain): Pet Funeral Services
  29. Protege (USA): AI Training Data Platform
  30. Vector Smart Chain (UK): Utility Token for Blockchain Ecosystem

 

 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What are the fastest-growing startups?

High-velocity companies that post rapid revenue gains, expand internationally, and convert partnerships and funding into repeatable customer outcomes.

Why do they matter in 2026?

They operationalize AI, embedded finance, and automation to outpace incumbents on cost, speed, compliance, and ROI.

How do the fastest-growing startups attract funding?

They target high-friction problems, prove unit economics early, show durable retention, and scale via ecosystem partnerships and APIs.

Which industries benefit most?

AI/ML, fintech, healthcare, logistics, consumer goods, and blockchain, where data network effects and platform plays compound fastest.

How We Selected these 30 Fastest Growing Startups

The data in this report comes from StartUs Insights’ Discovery Platform, covering over 9 million startups, scaleups, and tech companies globally. We applied filters such as location, founding year, technology readiness, and employee count to select 30 standout fastest-growing startups and scaleups.

Additionally, we used funding information and a proprietary popularity metric called Signal Strength – it measures the extent of a company’s influence within the global innovation ecosystem. We also cross-checked this information manually with external sources, as well as large language models (LLMs) such as Perplexity and ChatGPT, for accuracy.

 

 

30 Fastest Growing Companies to Watch [2026 & Beyond]

 

S.NoStartupLocationApplication AreaEstimated Total Revenue (USD)Overall Money Raised (USD)
1AnthropicSan Francisco, USALLM platform for coding, chat & enterprise$1.4B$25.85B
2Scale AISan Francisco, USAFull-stack AI data infrastructure$2.0B$17.08B
3KnowBe4Clearwater, USAHuman risk management & cloud email security$64.5M$3.50B
4PerplexitySan Francisco, USACitation-based AI answer engine & enterprise assistant$100M$1.80B
5AirwallexSingaporeGlobal payments & financial platform$333M$1.27B
6AspireSingaporeFinance OS, corporate cards & AI spend controls$131.9M$601.8M
7Liquid DeathLos Angeles, USASustainable canned water & beverages (CPG)$211M$464.9M
8ShiprocketNew Delhi, IndiaE-commerce logistics, fulfillment & enablement$130.4M$442.6M
9PreplyBrookline, USADigital tutoring marketplace with AI matching$100M$376.6M
10AirbyteSan Francisco, USAOpen-source data movement & integration$27.8M$335.6M
11AiraloSingaporeDigital eSIM marketplace$37M$297M
12DeepgramSan Francisco, USAVoice AI (ASR, TTS, real-time agents)$47M$205.5M
13ATOMELeeds, UKGreen fertilizer via renewable ammonia$2.09M$202.3M
14PrintifySan Francisco, USAPrint-on-demand e-commerce platform$21.2M$104.5M
15AALTO HAPSFarnborough, UKStratospheric platforms (HAPS) for connectivity & EO$21M$100M
16MiddeskSan Francisco, USABusiness identity & KYB infrastructure$16.3M$93.2M
17RenalysTokyo, JapanRenal therapeutics (IgA nephropathy)$0.48M$55.3M
18SAFCO Microfinance CompanyHyderabad, IndiaMicrofinance & inclusive financial services$80.5M$50M
19LeadIQSan Francisco, USASales prospecting & CRM data enrichment$8M$42M
20TailwindOklahoma City, USASMB social media marketing (Pinterest automation)$9.38M$31.9M
21GumroadSan Francisco, USACreator commerce for digital & physical products$31.9M$31.5M
22FathomSan Francisco, USAMeeting intelligence & medical coding$16M$31.1M
23ZeroTierSan Francisco, USASoftware-defined networking (P2P overlays)$5M$26.5M
24Swoove StudiosAntwerp, BelgiumNo-code/low-code 3D animation creation$3.53M$18.5M
25ZumrailsMontreal, CanadaUnified payments gateway & open banking$3M$18.4M
26Quantile HealthMontreal, CanadaHealthcare access analytics & payment risk transfer$1.77M$13.7M
27Matter IntelligenceEl Segundo, USASensor infrastructure & satellite sensing (EARTH-1)$0.98M$12M
28DepetMadrid, SpainPet funeral services & memorials$3.21M$11M
29ProtegeNew York City, USAAI training data exchange (multimodal, privacy-preserving)$3.37M$10M
30Vector Smart ChainLondon, UKBlockchain for dApps & tokenized RWAs$0.80M$10M

 

1. Anthropic – LLM Platform for Research & Data Analysis

  • Founding Year: 2021
  • Location: San Francisco, California, USA
  • Funding: Raised USD 13 billion in September 2025
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 1.4 billion
  • Total Money Raised: USD 25.84 billion

USA-based startup Anthropic provides AI research and products that prioritize safety at the frontier. It deploys its platform, Claude, to assist with coding, data analysis, content creation, and business strategy, as well as to simplify complex workflows.

Moreover, the startup applies its Responsible Scaling Policy and builds the Anthropic economic index to analyze AI’s impact on labor markets and the broader economy.

 

 

Additionally, it employs privacy-preserving systems and encourages collaboration with economists and policymakers to address AI’s societal effects.

Further, in September 2025, Anthropic secures USD 13 billion in Series F funding led by ICONIQ and co-led by Fidelity Management & Research Company and Lightspeed Venture Partners. It also partners with Microsoft to integrate Claude into Microsoft Copilot for expanding its enterprise footprint.

2. Scale AI – Full-Stack AI Infrastructure Platform

  • Founding Year: 2016
  • Location: San Francisco, California, USA
  • Funding: Raised USD 1 billion in May 2024 & USD 100 million agreement in September 2025
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 2 billion
  • Total Money Raised: USD 17.07 billion

Scale AI is a USA-based company that builds a full-stack data infrastructure that encourages the development, evaluation, and deployment of AI systems.

It organizes enterprise and government datasets through its data engine. The system collects, annotates, and curates information to ensure accuracy, scalability, and reliability across advanced models.

Moreover, the company applies reinforcement learning with human feedback, fine-tuning, and customized evaluation frameworks to optimize foundation models.

Scale AI in September 2025, supports the US Department of Defense through a five-year, USD 100 million agreement that enables mission operators to build, test, and deploy generative AI with classified data.

Further, in May 2024, the company secured USD 1 billion in Series F funding led by Accel with participation from Y Combinator, NVIDIA, Index Ventures, Founders Fund, and Amazon.

3. KnowBe4 – Human Risk Management Platform

  • Founding Year: 2010
  • Location: Clearwater, USA
  • Funding: Raised USD 300 million in June 2019
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 64.5 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 3.5 billion

USA-based startup KnowBe4 provides a human risk management platform. It combines AI-driven security awareness training, cloud email security, compliance support, and real-time coaching to counter phishing and social engineering threats.

The platform processes behavioral data and email patterns to detect risks. It applies self-learning threat detection and offers personalized education with automated interventions that block malicious inbound messages. These interventions also prevent outbound data loss and guide employees during risky actions across Microsoft 365 and other environments.

Moreover, in June 2019, the company raised USD 300 million in a funding round led by KKR to accelerate global expansion and platform development.

Later, in June 2024, it launched a Risk & Insurance Partner Program to collaborate with insurers and brokers in mitigating cyber risk.

Additionally, in August 2024, KnowBe4 partnered with Japan Cloud to expand its presence in Japan. Also, in June 2025, it announced a strategic integration with Microsoft Defender for Office 365 to enhance layered protection within the ICES vendor ecosystem.

4. Perplexity – Generative AI Search Engine

  • Founding Year: 2022
  • Location: San Francisco, California, USA
  • Funding: Raised USD 100 million in July 2025
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 100 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 1.79 billion

USA-based startup Perplexity analyzes global information through its generative AI search platform that offers concise, cited, and real-time answers.

It organizes web-wide data using hybrid search methods that combine semantic techniques, LLM ranking, and human feedback to provide insights across any topic or language.

 

 

Moreover, the company enhances enterprise productivity with its solution, Comet. The browser assistant builds websites, drafts emails, creates study plans, and manages tabs to streamline daily workflows.

In July 2024, the company collaborated with Amazon Web Services to launch Perplexity Enterprise Pro. This partnership extends AI-powered research tools to AWS customers and enables firms to save thousands of work hours monthly.

Further, in July 2025, Perplexity secures USD 100 million in fresh funding that raises its valuation to USD 18 billion. The investment attracts strong investor attention amid reports of Apple’s interest in acquisition.

5. Airwallex – Global Payment & Embedded Finance Solutions

  • Founding Year: 2015
  • Location: Singapore
  • Funding: Raised USD 300 million in May 2025
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 333 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 1.26 billion

Singaporean startup Airwallex enables a global payments and financial platform for growing businesses. It connects clients with multi-currency accounts, FX transfers, corporate cards, and embedded finance solutions.

It organizes international money movement through its proprietary network. The company gives clients access to local accounts in different countries and transfers to markets.

Moreover, the company facilitates integration via application programming interfaces (APIs). These APIs embed financial services, automate workflows, and support platforms with connected accounts and compliance-ready onboarding.

In August 2025, Airwallex partners with Pipe to enable same-day payouts for small businesses in international markets.

Moreover, the company collaborated with Bolt in June 2025 to streamline driver and courier wallet payments across countries. These partnerships involve fintech platforms, elite sports organizations, and mobility companies.

In July 2025, Arsenal and Airwallex announced a multi-year partnership. Under this agreement, Airwallex becomes the club’s Official Finance Software Partner.

Further, the company secures USD 300 million in Series F funding at a USD 6.2 billion valuation in May 2025. The investors include Square Peg, DST Global, Salesforce Ventures, Visa Ventures, Blackbird, Lone Pine Capital, and several leading Australian pension funds. This investment strengthens Airwallex’s expansion into the Americas, Europe, and Asia-Pacific.

6. Aspire – Financial Operating System & Corporate Cards

  • Founding Year: 2018
  • Location: Singapore
  • Funding: Raised USD 100 million in August 2025
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 131.9 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 601.82 million

Singaporean startup Aspire offers corporate cards and a unified financial operating system for modern businesses. It integrates multi-currency accounts, FX payments, spend controls, and accounting connections into a single platform.

Moreover, the company applies AI for receipt scanning, anomaly detection, auto-categorization, and spend limits to accelerate closing cycles. It improves real-time visibility and reduces manual errors.

Additionally, in August 2025, Aspire Yield expands into treasury services by offering regulated money-market access through AFT SG 2’s MAS license. It partners with Fullerton Fund Management to provide next-business-day liquidity in SGD and USD.

In September 2025, the company collaborates with Google Cloud to bring Workspace tools and AI productivity features to SMBs in Singapore and Indonesia.

It also integrates with Stripe to enable faster global payment acceptance through cards and digital wallets in August 2025.

Furthermore, Aspire secured an oversubscribed USD 100 million Series C led by Lightspeed and co-led by Sequoia Capital SEA in August 2025. Other investors include PayPal Ventures, LGT Capital Partners, Picus Capital, and MassMutual Ventures.

7. Liquid Death – Sustainable Canned Water

  • Founding Year: 2017
  • Location: Los Angeles, California, USA
  • Funding: Raised USD 67 million in March 2024
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 211 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 464.91 million

USA-based startup Liquid Death offers a beverage portfolio that includes still and sparkling mountain water. It also creates soda-flavored sparkling water and iced tea packaged in infinitely recyclable aluminum cans.

The startup sources natural mountain water and formulates low-calorie drinks without artificial sweeteners. It further distributes its products through retail, e-commerce, and entertainment venues to reach diverse consumer segments.

Moreover, it emphasizes sustainability by replacing plastic bottles with aluminum. It also extends customer engagement with branded merchandise and reinforces visibility through unconventional marketing campaigns.

In March 2024, it secured USD 67 million in funding led by investors such as Josh Brolin and NFL All-Pro DeAndre Hopkins. This round pushed the company’s valuation to USD 1.4 billion to expand distribution and accelerate product innovation.

Also, in April 2025, it entered a multi-year integrated marketing partnership with the MSG Family of Companies. Through this collaboration, it gained brand presence across Madison Square Garden, Sphere in Las Vegas, and the New York Rangers to broaden exposure and strengthen market growth.

8. Shiprocket – eCommerce Logistics & Fulfillment

  • Founding Year: 2017
  • Location: New Delhi, India
  • Funding: Raised USD 26 million in October 2022
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 130.44 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 442.59 million

Indian startup Shiprocket enables an e-commerce logistics and enablement platform for online sellers. It combines domestic and cross-border shipping with warehousing, checkout, and financial services.

The company automates nationwide delivery and cargo shipping through solutions such as ShipX and CargoX. Moreover, the company enhances merchant growth with its unified APIs and financial offerings. It also provides capital support and multi-currency settlement and ensures sellers operate efficiently across diverse markets.

In October 2022, Shiprocket secured USD 26 million in funding at a USD 1.2 billion valuation from Koch Group, MUFG Bank, Tribe Capital, Susquehanna International Group, and Huddle Ventures. This investment extended its earlier Zomato-backed round and supported expansion into cross-border services.

 

 

Further, in June 2025, Shiprocket partnered with Fynd to improve last-mile delivery for over 300 direct-to-consumer brands. It integrated courier aggregation, price comparison, and order tracking into Fynd’s platform, strengthening reach in Tier II and Tier III Indian markets.

Additionally, in July 2024, Shiprocket collaborated with Snowflake to deploy its AI Data Cloud, giving 150K Indian merchants faster access to data and real-time insights. This partnership reduced data processing times from days to minutes and allowed merchants to optimize decision-making with generative AI readiness.

In July 2025, the company launched Shunya.ai, an AI platform developed with Ultrasafe to support MSMEs with catalog management and invoice generation. It also introduced campaign automation across nine Indian languages, supported the nation’s digital sovereignty, and offered affordable AI tools starting at USD 5.8 per month.

9. Preply – Online Language Learning Platform

  • Founding Year: 2012
  • Location: Brookline, Massachusetts, USA
  • Funding: Raised USD 120 million in July 2023 & USD 10 million in December 2023
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 100 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 376.6 million

Preply is a USA-based startup that operates an online language learning platform connecting tutors with learners across different subjects and nationalities. It builds a global network that enables personalized education across diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds.

The platform matches learners with tutors through AI-powered algorithms to ensure optimal pairing. It then offers personalized lessons, progress tracking, and tailored exercises via live online sessions.

It further supports individual learners through customized study paths and flexible learning schedules. At the same time, it assists corporate teams with business-focused training, role-specific vocabulary, and centralized dashboards for performance monitoring.

Moreover, Preply enhances tutor efficiency with AI teaching assistants that generate exercises and grammar explanations. Learners also benefit from adaptive learning paths and multilingual access that support diverse educational needs.

In July 2023, the company extended its Series C to USD 120 million with participation from Horizon Capital, Reach Capital, Hoxton Ventures, and Owl Ventures. This investment focused on scaling AI integration and expanding Preply’s global reach.

Additionally, in December 2023, IFC and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) co-invested USD 10 million alongside Horizon Capital. This funding strengthened Preply’s R&D and supported Ukraine’s tech sector for its educational technology and economic resilience goals

10. Airbyte – Open-Source Data Integration Engine

  • Founding Year: 2020
  • Location: San Francisco, California, USA
  • Funding: Raised USD 150 million in December 2021
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 27.8 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 335.55 million

USA-based startup Airbyte provides an open-source data movement platform that converts and activates data from different sources into warehouses, lakes, and operational systems.

It works across cloud, hybrid, and on-premise environments and ensures enterprises maintain sovereignty, compliance, and AI readiness.

The platform incorporates database replication, custom connectors, and reverse extract, transform, load (ETL) features. These capabilities allow businesses to move structured and unstructured data into analytics and machine learning (ML) pipelines.

 

 

Moreover, Airbyte enhances developer productivity with a low-code connector builder and embedded configuration widgets. It also strengthens enterprise security through SOC2 compliance and role-based access control.

In December 2021, it secured USD 150 million in Series B funding at a USD 1.5 billion valuation from investors including Altimeter Capital, Coatue Management, Thrive Capital, Salesforce Ventures, Benchmark, Accel, and SV Angel. This funding round accelerated the company’s product expansion and strengthened its position in the data infrastructure market.

Additionally, in September 2023, it partnered with Kestra, an open-source orchestration platform, to simplify end-to-end data orchestration and automate data workflows for enterprises.

Later, in April 2025, it introduced Airbyte Embedded, developed in collaboration with leading startups and Fortune 500 companies, to support context-aware AI applications across sectors.

11. Airalo – Digital eSIM Marketplace

  • Founding Year: 2019
  • Location: Singapore
  • Funding: Raised USD 220 million in July 2025
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 37 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 296.95 million

Singaporean startup Airalo provides a digital eSIM marketplace that enables travelers to access mobile data without the need for physical SIM cards.

It allows users to buy, install, and manage eSIM packages directly from its app, which supports multiple languages and currencies for global accessibility.

Moreover, Airalo enhances user convenience with easy installation, quick activation, and real-time top-ups while also integrating loyalty benefits and enterprise solutions for businesses.

 

 

In July 2025, the company secured USD 220 million in a CVC-led round, joined by Peak XV and Antler Elevate, which makes it the first eSIM unicorn with a valuation above USD 1 billion.

Additionally, in March 2025, it partnered with Xiaomi’s International Internet Business Department to pre-load Airalo’s application on smartphones for traveler connectivity.

In April 2025, it collaborated with Gulf Air to integrate eSIM purchases with the Falconflyer loyalty program and expand rewards for passengers.

12. Deepgram – Voice AI Platform

  • Founding Year: 2015
  • Location: San Francisco, California, USA
  • Funding: Raised USD 85.9 million in March 2023
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 47 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 205.48 million

Deepgram is a USA-based startup that provides a unified voice-AI platform of speech-to-text, text-to-speech, and real-time voice-agent APIs. It ingests audio, transcribes it with low-latency automatic speech recognition (ASR), routes intent through built-in orchestration, and synthesizes natural speech in real time across cloud, VPC, and self-hosted deployments.

Moreover, the platform supports enterprise use with barge-in handling, turn-taking, function calling, SOC 2 controls, and data-residency options.

Its Aura-2 text-to-speech (TTS) and Nova-series ASR offer domain-tuned pronunciation and sub-second responsiveness for production workloads.

In addition, the company expands its ecosystem through a March 2024 strategic partnership with Clarifai for voice-driven AI applications and a May 2025 collaboration with Think41 for contact-center agent assist.

Further, an August 2025 strategic collaboration agreement with Amazon Web Services (AWS) deepens co-selling and native AWS integrations.

Deepgram has also raised USD 85.9 million to date, including a USD 47 million Series B extension in March 2023 led by Madrona alongside Andreessen Horowitz, Tiger Global, and Wing VC. It uses this capital to scale the platform and ship enterprise features.

13. ATOME – Low-Carbon Fertilizer Production

  • Founding Year: 2021
  • Location: Leeds, UK
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 2.08 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 202.26 million

ATOME is a UK-based company that creates large-scale green fertilizer projects supported by renewable energy to decarbonize the agricultural supply chain.

It produces calcium ammonium nitrate fertilizer using green ammonia derived from water and renewable power. This process reduces harmful emissions compared to fossil-fuel-based production.

Moreover, the company’s fertilizer maintains crop yields and soil health. It also offers cost competitiveness without reliance on subsidies. In particular, its Villeta Project in Paraguay is set to begin operations in 2028. The facility is set to utilize 145 MW of hydrogen-to-ammonia capacity to produce 260K tonnes of fertilizer annually. As a result, it is expected to displace up to 12.5 million tonnes of CO2 over its life.

Further, in July 2025, the European Investment Bank approved a loan of up to USD 135 million for the project. Shortly after, in the same month, the Green Climate Fund provided USD 50 million in concessional financing to lower capital costs.

Additionally, in September 2025, ATOME signed a 10-year offtake agreement with Yara International for the Villeta plant’s entire output. This agreement secures long-term distribution through Yara’s global network.

14. Printify – Print-on-Demand Platform

  • Founding Year: 2025
  • Location: San Francisco, California, USA
  • Funding: Raised USD 45 million in September 2021
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 21.2 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 104.52 million

Printify is a USA-based company that provides a print-on-demand platform for creators, entrepreneurs, and brands. It enables them to design, sell, and ship custom products globally without upfront investment.

The platform connects sellers to a network of production partners across multiple locations. It also allows products ranging from apparel and mugs to phone cases and posters to be printed and shipped directly to customers once an order is placed.

Further, it integrates with leading e-commerce marketplaces such as Etsy, Amazon, and Shopify. This gives sellers access to online storefronts and automated fulfillment.

In September 2021, it raised USD 45 million in Series A funding led by Index Ventures. The round also included participation from H&M Group, Virgin Group, and Dreamers VC to expand its marketplace reach.

Later, in November 2024, the company merged with Printful to strengthen its technology capabilities, extend product variety, and enhance global fulfillment solutions.

15. AALTO HAPS – High Altitude Platform Station

  • Founding Year: 2022
  • Location: Farnborough, UK
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 21 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 100 million

AALTO HAPS is a UK-based company that develops large-scale stratospheric platforms for connectivity and Earth observation. It provides these services through its solar-powered Zephyr High Altitude Platform Station (HAPS).

The Zephyr operates above conventional air traffic in the stratosphere and stays airborne for months. It carries payloads that provide mobile connectivity, low-latency 5G, and high-resolution imaging.

 

 

The platform incorporates advanced battery and solar cell technology to sustain record-breaking continuous flight. It also supports flexible payload configurations for both government and commercial applications.

Moreover, Zephyr enables direct-to-device mobile access in remote regions. It also supports Earth observation with a ground sampling distance of up to 15 cm.

In July 2025, AALTO signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Indonesia’s Mitratel to develop HAPS connectivity solutions. This agreement targets expanding coverage in underserved 3T regions and reducing network white spots.

 

 

16. Middesk – Customer Identity Verification & Onboarding

  • Founding Year: 2019
  • Location: San Francisco, California, USA
  • Funding: Raised USD 57 million in February 2022
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 16.3 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 93.15 million

Middesk is a USA-based startup that operates a business identity platform for onboarding, underwriting, and compliance monitoring. The company focuses on simplifying verification processes to support faster and more reliable customer approvals.

The platform verifies business identities using Secretary of State records, tax identification data, and watchlist screenings. It also enriches profiles with credit assessments, lien filing, and payroll tax setup tools to streamline decision-making.

It incorporates AI-driven risk models that detect compliance, fraud, and credit risk patterns. In addition, it offers real-time monitoring and document retrieval to minimize manual reviews.

In February 2022, the company raised USD 57 million in a Series B round co-led by Insight Partners and Canapi Ventures. This investment included participation from Sequoia, Accel, and Gaingels to accelerate product development and reinforce its position as a business identity layer.

In January 2025, Middesk partnered with ATTUNE to integrate automated verification into its digital origination platform for banks and credit unions. This collaboration improves KYB compliance and reduces fraud.

Shortly after, it also announced a collaboration with Certa to expand third-party risk management solutions for large enterprises. The partnership targeted industries such as financial services, healthcare, and manufacturing.

Also, in 2025, the company entered a partnership with Backbase to enhance KYB verification for banks and credit unions. This integration ensures financial institutions onboard only legitimate businesses in real time.

17. Renalys – Therapeutics for Renal Diseases

  • Founding Year: 2023
  • Location: Tokyo, Japan
  • Funding: Raised JPY 6.0 billion in July 2024
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 481K
  • Total Money Raised: USD 55.3 million

Renalys is a Japanese biopharmaceutical startup that creates novel therapeutics for renal diseases across Asia. It concentrates on developing treatments that address critical unmet medical needs in the region.

The company advances sparsentan, an oral Dual Endothelin Angiotensin Receptor Antagonist (DEARA). This therapy reduces proteinuria by inhibiting both Endothelin-1 and Angiotensin II pathways to slow the progression of IgA nephropathy.

It differentiates its approach by focusing on chronic kidney conditions with non-immunosuppressive therapies. These treatments maintain efficacy and also reduce adverse side effects.

In January 2024, the company entered a licensing agreement with Travere Therapeutics to develop and commercialize sparsentan in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Southeast Asian nations. This deal secured regional rights to broaden patient access.

Also, in July 2024, Renalys closed a JPY 6.0 billion Series A financing co-led by Catalys Pacific and SR One with support from institutional investors. The funding enables the advancement of its Phase III clinical trial in Japan.

18. SAFCO Microfinance Company – Finance Services for Low-income Households

  • Founding Year: 2022
  • Location: Hyderabad, India
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 80.46 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 50 million

SAFCO Microfinance Company is an Indian non-banking financial institution that designs microfinance solutions to strengthen the social and economic resilience of low-income households.

It operates a business model that combines financial products such as loans, credit assessments, and payroll tax setup with non-financial services. These services include business counseling, financial literacy, insurance, and market linkages to support entrepreneurs and smallholder farmers.

Moreover, the company integrates livestock and crop insurance, emergency funds, and soil testing into its offerings to enhance long-term sustainability and reduce financial vulnerability for its clients.

In July 2023, it partnered with EFU Life to launch the Kamil Hifazat Plan, embedding life and health insurance into its lending ecosystem to protect borrowers against health-related financial shocks.

19. LeadIQ – AI-Powered Sales Intelligence Platform

  • Founding Year: 2015
  • Location: San Francisco, California, USA
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 8 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 42 million

LeadIQ is a USA-based startup that offers an AI-driven prospecting and sales intelligence platform. It is designed to enrich CRM data, automate workflows, and accelerate outbound revenue growth.

The platform captures accurate company and contact information and validates it in real time. It then synchronizes the data across Salesforce, HubSpot, and other engagement tools to streamline sales processes.

 

 

It further enhances performance with champion tracking that monitors buyer job changes and AI-powered account prospecting that identifies high-fit opportunities. Additionally, it includes LeadIQ Scribe for automated and personalized email generation.

In October 2021, the company raised USD 30 million in a Series B round led by Cathay Innovation with participation from Eight Roads Ventures, Alumni Ventures, and Draper Associates. This investment strengthened its product roadmap and supported enterprise expansion.

Moreover, in February 2025, it partnered with Nooks to integrate mobile data verification and enrichment into Nooks’ AI Sales Assistant platform. This collaboration enables sales teams to improve connection rates and boost prospect engagement.

20. Tailwind – Social Media Management Software

  • Founding Year: 2012
  • Location: Oklahoma City, USA
  • Funding: Raised USD 1 million in November 2013
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 9.38 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 31.85 million

Tailwind is a USA-based startup that creates a digital marketing platform for small and medium businesses. It focuses on automating Pinterest content creation, scheduling, and publishing to simplify marketing workflows.

The platform generates multiple fresh Pins from a URL, image, or video. It then validates engagement potential through AI-driven insights and synchronizes them across Shopify, WordPress, WooCommerce, and Squarespace to streamline campaign execution.

Additionally, it leverages AI to learn brand voice and create tailored Pin titles and descriptions. It also enables interval and multi-board pinning to expand reach efficiently.

In November 2013, the company raised USD 1 million in a seed round. This funding expanded its operations in social media, digital marketing, and social commerce.

Moreover, in September 2025, it announced a partnership with Falcon Gases through Tailwind Capital. The collaboration supports the development of an industrial gas distribution platform and supports its growth-oriented investment approach and diversification strategy.

21. Gumroad – eCommerce Platform for Creators

  • Founding Year: 2011
  • Location: San Francisco, California, USA
  • Funding: USD 2.14 million in March 2024
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 31.9 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 31.46 million

Gumroad is a USA-based startup that builds an e-commerce platform enabling creators to sell digital products, memberships, and services directly to their audiences.

The company supports independent sellers by providing a simple infrastructure for monetizing creative work.

The platform allows sellers to upload files and set pricing structures such as one-time or recurring payments. It also processes transactions securely across multiple currencies.

It includes features such as customizable storefronts and integration with existing websites. In addition, it offers automated VAT collection, license key generation, and lightweight DRM to protect creative work.

 

 

Additionally, it strengthens engagement by supporting flexible payment models, analytics for sales tracking, and automated workflows that simplify audience management.

In March 2024, the company raised USD 2.14 million in seed funding to expand its platform and support creator-focused services.

Further, in April 2025, it acquired the online community Small Bets for USD 3.6 million to deepen its ecosystem and broaden value for its creator base.

22. Fathom – AI Assistant for Meeting Transcription & Summarization

  • Founding Year: 2020
  • Location: San Francisco, California, USA
  • Funding: Raised USD 17 million in August 2024
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 16 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 31.06 million

Fathom is a USA-based startup that creates AI platforms for meeting intelligence and healthcare operations.

Its meeting platform transcribes conversations in real time and generates accurate summaries. It then extracts action items that sync automatically with tools such as Slack, Salesforce, HubSpot, and Asana to reduce administrative overhead.

It enhances team productivity by offering searchable transcripts and AI-generated scorecards. The company also offers deal intelligence and customizable summaries that improve visibility into customer interactions. These features strengthen collaboration and keep teams aligned across projects.

At the same time, the company advances healthcare efficiency through its autonomous medical coding solution, which addresses labor shortages and improves accuracy. It also optimizes revenue cycle management to reduce denials and enhance financial performance for providers.

In January 2024, it partnered with Google Cloud to list its medical coding platform on the Google Cloud Marketplace, expanding accessibility for health systems and physician practices.

In August 2024, it raised USD 17 million in a Series A round led by Telescope Partners with participation from seed investors and over USD 2 million in user crowdfunding. This funding accelerated the development of its Team Edition product and supported its role as an AI-driven productivity layer for enterprises and healthcare providers.

23. ZeroTier – Software-Defined Global Networking Platform

  • Founding Year: 2015
  • Location: San Francisco, California, USA
  • Funding: Raised USD 13.5 million in July 2024
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 5 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 26.45 million

ZeroTier is a USA-based startup that enables a secure software-defined networking (SDN) platform. It connects devices worldwide as if they were on a single local area network (LAN).

The platform establishes encrypted, peer-to-peer (P2P) connections through a lightweight agent and cryptographic identifiers (IDs), ensuring trusted communication without routing through centralized servers.

 

 

It simplifies networking with features such as real-time provisioning, cross-platform compatibility, centralized dashboards, and integrations with enterprise systems. This supports use cases from IoT deployments to software-defined wide area networks (SD-WAN) and virtual private networks (VPN).

In July 2024, the company secured USD 13.5 million in a Series A round led by Battery Ventures to expand its device-centric connectivity solutions.

Moreover, in April 2025, it launched a Partner Program with TD SYNNEX, MikroTik, Teltonika, and OPNsense to allow resellers, systems integrators (SIs), and managed service providers (MSPs) next-generation networking options.

24. Swoove Studios – 3D Animation App

  • Founding Year: 2020
  • Location: Antwerp, Belgium
  • Funding: Raised USD 7.5 million in October 2024
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 3.53 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 18.5 million

Swoove Studios is a Belgian startup that develops a 3D animation platform and enables users to create and direct animated stories without prior expertise.

The platform combines virtual actor customization, AI-assisted scriptwriting, intuitive editing tools, and a large library of music and sound effects. These features simplify the animation process and expand creative possibilities for users.

 

 

Moreover, in October 2024, it raised USD 7.5 million in a seed round led by European angel investors. This brought its total funding to USD 11 million and supported its US launch and strategic review.

25. Zumrails – Payment Gateway Integration

  • Founding Year: 2019
  • Location: Montreal, Canada
  • Funding: raised CAD 10.5 million in August 2025
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 3 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 18.37 million

Zumrails is a Canadian startup that offers an all-in-one payments gateway integrating open banking and instant payments. Its platform connects identity verification, bank account linking, and multiple rails. This includes credit, debit, EFT, Visa Direct, Mastercard, Interac, ACH, PayPal, and the Federal Reserve’s (FedNow) instant payment system that processes transactions securely and in real time.

It also provides card issuance programs, subscription billing, financial data aggregation, and KYC insights. In addition, it provides advanced reporting that reduces fraud, simplifies compliance, and enhances visibility. This unified approach eliminates vendor sprawl and supports use cases from credit building and embedded finance to global money transfers.

In August 2025, the company secured CAD 10.5 million in a Series A round led by Arthur Ventures. The funding supports the expansion of its payments gateway and the introduction of Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS).

Earlier, in October 2024, Zumrails partnered with Fiserv to offer embedded finance solutions in the US. This collaboration allows businesses to integrate transaction processing, reconciliation, and fraud management directly into their platforms.

26. Quantile Health – AI Assistant for Drug Commercialization

  • Founding Year: 2021
  • Location: Montreal, Canada
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 1.76 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 13.7 million

Quantile Health is a Canadian startup that provides an AI-powered platform to improve patient access to therapies such as gene and cell treatments.

Its platform processes unstructured healthcare data into structured insights that show where patients face access barriers. These insights enable drug manufacturers to reduce commercialization costs and improve gross-to-net performance.

The company strengthens this approach with a risk transfer model that allows payers and employers to subscribe to treatment access at predictable costs. This replaces the fee-for-service structure that exposes them to catastrophic financial risk.

In March 2024, Quantile Health raised USD 6 million in a round led by Munich Re Ventures with participation from First Round Capital and Correlation Ventures to expand its payer partnerships and manufacturer network.

27. Matter Intelligence – Sensor Infrastructure Development

  • Founding Year: 2023
  • Location: El Segundo, California, USA
  • Funding: Raised USD 7 million in October 2021
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 980K
  • Total Money Raised: USD 12 million

Matter Intelligence is a USA-based startup that deploys sensor infrastructure and data platforms. These systems capture information on natural and artificial materials beyond the visible spectrum.

Its solutions integrate hyperspectral, thermal, and red-green-blue (RGB) imaging at sub-meter resolution. This enables precise measurement of composition, shape, and temperature across applications ranging from atmospheric monitoring to surface analysis.

The company supports these capabilities through its EARTH-1 satellite. The satellite provides ultrabroadband sensing with high signal-to-noise ratios and rapid global revisits, producing detailed datasets that enrich both commercial and government operations.

Moreover, in October 2021, the company raised USD 7 million in a Series A round led by GV. The funding expanded its technology and strengthened its platform for curating and converting complex data into actionable intelligence.

28. Depet – Pet Funeral Services

  • Founding Year: 2024
  • Location: Madrid, Spain
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 3.21 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 11.03 million

Depet is a Spanish startup that offers funeral services for pets, including individual cremations, collective cremations, and memorial ceremonies. Its process begins with personalized guidance to enable owners to choose the appropriate service, followed by online payment and scheduling. Moreover, the company concludes with respectful handling of the animal to ensure peace of mind.

29. Protege – AI Training Data Platform

  • Founding Year: 2024
  • Location: New York City, New York, USA
  • Funding: USD 10 million in September 2024 & USD 25 million in August 2025
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 3.37 million
  • Total Money Raised: USD 10 million

Protege, a USA-based startup, establishes an AI training data platform that enables the ethical exchange of multimodal datasets across industries.

The platform aggregates fragmented sources such as electronic health records (EHR), medical images, conversational audio, and premium video. It then applies privacy-preserving de-identification, rights verification, and structured formatting to make them usable for specific AI model requirements.

It strengthens usability through a scientist-led process that reviews objectives and assesses feasibility. The company also offers curated datasets with quality assurance, ensuring compliance and alignment with research or commercial goals.

In September 2024, Protege raised USD 10 million in a seed round led by CRV, supporting the launch of its platform for AI training data exchange.

Also, in December 2024, it acquired Calliope Networks, adding hundreds of thousands of hours of audiovisual content and expanding into the media vertical.

In April 2025, the company partnered with OneMedNet to integrate real-time multimodal healthcare data. This is enhancing precision and clinical relevance for AI-driven healthcare models.

Further, in August 2025, it secured a USD 25 million Series A led by Footwork, driving deeper product development, new verticals, and global expansion.

30. Vector Smart Chain – Utility Token for Blockchain Ecosystem

  • Founding Year: 2023
  • Location: London, UK
  • Funding: Raised USD 10 million in October 2024
  • Estimated Total Revenue: USD 803K
  • Total Money Raised: USD 10 million

Vector Smart Chain, based in the UK, operates a blockchain ecosystem. It focuses on decentralized applications, enterprise solutions, and tokenized real-world assets (RWA).

Its platform combines low, predictable transaction fees with high scalability. It is also compatible with both the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) and Cosmos. This enables developers and enterprises to build cost-effective and secure applications.

The ecosystem extends across diverse use cases, including decentralized finance (DeFi), gaming, and metaverse applications. It also covers non-fungible tokens (NFTs), decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), and sustainable blockchain solutions.

In October 2024, Vector Smart Chain secured up to USD 10 million through a token subscription agreement with GEM Digital Limited.

By September 2025, it announced a strategic partnership with Orbit Carbon to enable tokenization of carbon certificates for clients such as Tesla, Honda, and General Motors. This move positioned the company as a key enabler of blockchain-based environmental solutions.

Explore the Fastest Growing Companies & Startups to Stay Ahead

The 30 fastest-growing companies convert capital, partnerships, and product velocity into defensible market share across AI, fintech, healthcare, logistics, blockchain, and consumer goods.

Use this list to shortlist partners, benchmark go-to-market speed, and pressure-test pricing and delivery models in controlled pilots. Prioritize teams with durable revenue growth, high retention, and clear global expansion paths, aligned to near-term KPIs and risk thresholds.

With thousands of emerging technologies and business innovations, navigating the right investment and partnership opportunities that bring returns quickly is challenging.

With access to over 9 million emerging companies and 20K+ technologies & trends globally, our AI and Big Data-powered Discovery Platform equips you with the actionable insights you need to stay ahead of the curve in your market. Leverage this powerful tool to spot the next big thing before it goes mainstream. Stay relevant, resilient, and ready for what is next.