Profound, a startup building marketing software to help brands appear in AI search results, has raised a $180 million Series D round at a $1.8 billion valuation, less than seven months after closing a $96 million Series C. Sequoia and Kleiner Perkins led the new round, with existing investors including Lightspeed Venture Partners, Khosla Ventures and South Park Commons also participating.
Founded two years ago, Profound began as an analytics platform before expanding into helping companies research and build marketing strategies around AI-driven discovery. The startup is part of a growing wave of companies in the generative engine optimization and answer engine optimization space, where businesses work to ensure their products surface prominently within AI systems that consumers increasingly use for search, rather than traditional search engines.
The company reported that its revenue has tripled over the past six months and that it now serves more than 1,000 enterprise customers, including Comcast, The Estée Lauder Companies and Walmart.
Featured image: Credit: Profound
