Profound, a startup that builds marketing software to help brands appear in AI search results, said on Tuesday it has closed a $180 million Series D financing round, bringing its valuation to $1.8 billion. The round follows a $96 million Series C raised less than seven months earlier.
Investors
The Series D was led by Sequoia and Kleiner Perkins. Existing investors that participated in the round include Lightspeed Venture Partners, Khosla Ventures, and South Park Commons.
Product evolution and market focus
Launched two years ago, Profound began as an analytics platform and has expanded its product suite to help companies research and create marketing strategies focused on AI discovery. The company positions itself in the GEO/AEO space — generative engine optimization and answer engine optimization — where businesses seek ways to surface their products and content in increasingly common AI search and answer systems.
Customers and growth
Profound reports that its revenue has grown threefold in the past six months. It now serves more than 1,000 enterprise customers, including Comcast, The Estée Lauder Companies, and Walmart.
Why this matters
The sizable fundraise and rapid revenue growth suggest strong demand from brands to improve visibility within AI-driven search environments. The $1.8 billion valuation also reflects investor confidence in the market opportunity for technologies that optimize brand discovery as search shifts toward AI-powered interfaces.
