New York City is a major technology hub. Many new tech teams build tools here for finance and media. The city has top talent and big capital. Local teams make great software for real business needs. You can find customers right down the street. The AI startups New York City hosts are growing fast. Read the full list to see how these companies are changing our world.
New York City has a fast tech scene. Wall Street and Madison Avenue live here. Now, top AI startups New York City are growing fast. These teams change how we work. They build tools for finance and media. Founders find great talent here. You get access to big capital. Customers live just down the street. The local community supports new tech ideas. This city offers unique perks for your business.
Success requires the right network. Big shifts are happening right now in Manhattan and Brooklyn. You can lead this next wave. Learn how local founders build their teams.
The 10 AI startups New York City boasts about
216 AI startups headquartered in New York are listed in the 2026 Y Combinator startup directory alone. NYC AI companies have collectively raised about $18 billion in disclosed funding. And therefore, to find the AI startups, we have created basic criteria. So, inclusion criteria include only companies that meet all of the following:
- Headquarters in New York City.
- AI is the company’s primary product or technology.
- Operating in 2026.
- Publicly available company information.
- Publicly disclosed startup stage (Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C, Growth, etc.).
So, according to these 5, here are the AI startups New York City. Just to be clear, this is not a ranking of best to worst. It is a list of startups that we believe you should know about.
| SR. No | Company | Founded | Stage | Funding | Employees | AI Focus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Runway | 2018 | Series E | ~$860M | 300+ | Generative video AI |
| 2 | Hebbia | 2020 | Series B | ~$161M | 120+ | AI research assistant |
| 3 | EliseAI | 2017 | Series E | ~$325M | 400+ | Conversational AI |
| 4 | Kalepa | 2018 | Series C | ~$50M | 100+ | Insurance underwriting AI |
| 5 | Regal | 2020 | Series B | ~$82M | ~80 | Voice AI |
| 6 | Hedra | 2023 | Series A | ~$43M | ~15 | AI video generation |
| 7 | Sixfold AI | 2023 | Series B | ~$52M | Growing | Insurance AI |
| 8 | FLORA | 2024 | Series A | ~$49M | Early-stage | Creative AI |
| 9 | Northslope | 2023 | Seed | Seed | Early-stage | Finance AI |
| 10 | TwinKnowledge | 2023 | Seed | Seed | Early-stage | Construction AI |
Runway
- Founded: 2018
- Founders: Cristóbal Valenzuela, Alejandro Matamala, Anastasis Germanidis
- Stage: Series E (Growth)
- Employees: 300+
- Industry: Generative AI
- Core Product: AI-powered video generation and editing platform
- Notable Customers: Lionsgate, Canva, CBS, creators worldwide
Runway leads the market of AI startups New York City has. Cristóbal Valenzuela and his team started it in 2018. They make video editing tools with AI. Big media companies like Lionsgate use their product. The team raised $860 million. They now have over 300 employees.
Hebbia
- Founded: 2020
- Founder: George Sivulka
- Stage: Series B
- Employees: 120+
- Industry: Enterprise AI
- Core Product: Matrix AI research platform for finance, legal, and enterprise knowledge work
- Notable Customers: BlackRock, KKR, Carlyle, major investment firms
George Sivulka founded Hebbia in 2020. This firm builds an AI research platform. It helps finance and legal teams find data. Major investment firms like BlackRock use it. They have raised $161 million so far. The team has 120 workers.
EliseAI
- Founded: 2017
- Founders: Minna Song, Tony Stoyanov
- Stage: Series E
- Employees: 400+
- Industry: Conversational AI
- Core Product: AI agents for property management and healthcare
- Customers: Thousands of apartment communities and healthcare providers
Minna Song and Tony Stoyanov started EliseAI in 2017. They build smart conversational agents. Their software helps property managers and doctors. Thousands of apartment groups use this tool. They raised over $250 million. They employ 400 people today.
Kalepa
- Founded: 2018
- Founders: Paul Monasterio, Andrew Strickland
- Stage: Series C
- Employees: 100+
- Industry: Insurance AI
- Core Product: AI-powered commercial insurance underwriting platform
- Customers: Global insurers and managing general agents (MGAs)
Paul Monasterio and Andrew Strickland founded Kalepa in 2018. They created a smart underwriting platform. This software helps commercial insurance firms. Global insurers use their product to manage risk. The team raised $50 million. They employ 100 people.
Regal
- Founded: 2020
- Founders: Alex Levin, Rebecca Greene
- Stage: Series B
- Employees: Around 80
- Industry: Voice AI
- Core Product: AI voice agents and customer engagement platform
- Customers: Enterprise sales and customer support teams
Alex Levin and Rebecca Greene started Regal in 2020. They make AI voice bots for sales. Their tools help customer support teams talk to buyers. Enterprise sales teams use this platform. They raised $82 million. They have 80 employees.
Hedra
- Founded: 2023
- Founders: Michael Lingelbach, Alex Bergman, and team
- Stage: Series A
- Employees: Around 15
- Industry: Generative AI
- Core Product: AI-generated characters and video creation platform
- Customers: Content creators, marketers, and media teams
New creators love the AI Startups New York City boasts. Michael Lingelbach and his team started Hedra in 2023. They build video tools for characters. Marketers use this platform to make ads. They raised $43 million. Fifteen people work here.
Sixfold AI
- Founded: 2023
- Founders: Alex Schmelkin, Jane Tran, Brian Moseley
- Stage: Series B
- Employees: Growing startup team
- Industry: Insurance AI
- Core Product: AI underwriting automation for insurers
- Customers: Global insurance companies, reinsurers, and MGAs
Alex Schmelkin and his partners built Sixfold AI in 2023. This tool automates underwriting for insurance companies. Global insurance brands use their system. They raised $52 million. The startup team grows larger every month.
FLORA
- Founded: 2024
- Founder: Weber Wong
- Stage: Series A
- Employees: Early-stage team
- Industry: Creative AI
- Core Product: AI workspace for designers and creative professionals
- Customers: Design agencies, artists, and creative teams
Weber Wong started FLORA in 2024. He built a creative workspace for designers. Artists use this tool to build new projects. Design agencies love the digital workspace. The team raised $49 million. They operate as an early-stage team.
Northslope
- Founded: 2023
- Founders: Ashvin Bhandari, Jake Spiegel
- Stage: Seed
- Employees: Early-stage team
- Industry: FinTech AI
- Core Product: AI-powered finance and revenue intelligence platform
- Customers: B2B SaaS companies and finance teams
Ashvin Bhandari and Jake Spiegel founded Northslope in 2023. They make a revenue intelligence platform. Finance teams use it to track cash. Software companies manage money with this tool. They raised public seed funding. A small team runs it.
TwinKnowledge
- Founded: 2023
- Founders: Dr. Ivan Panushev
- Stage: Seed
- Employees: Early-stage team
- Industry: Construction AI
- Core Product: AI-powered digital twins and construction intelligence
- Customers: Construction and infrastructure companies
Tech builders look at AI startups in New York City closely. TwinKnowledge started in 2023 with seed funding. They build digital twins for construction projects. Infrastructure teams use this data to plan work. Builders use it to track sites.
Conclusion:
New York City offers a distinct landscape for tech growth. Traditional business sectors choose to build tools here. Local founders gain clear benefits from this dense commercial environment. You find clients and partners within walking distance. These local teams build highly practical products for enterprise users. They focus on immediate commercial value. This ecosystem moves fast.
New York continues to attract substantial capital for software development. Leaders here shape the future of business operations. The current momentum of AI startups New York City hosts shows no signs of slowing down. Your business can thrive inside this supportive network.
People also asked
What industries do AI startups in New York City serve most?
Local software teams primarily build tools for the dominant commercial sectors in Manhattan and Brooklyn. You see the highest concentration of applications inside the finance, insurance, real estate, and media markets.
What funding trends define the local tech ecosystem?
The region continues to attract substantial capital from leading global venture funds. Investors prioritize mature enterprise software groups and practical platforms that produce clear operational value.
Why do engineering teams scale their businesses here?
Founders gain immediate access to major institutional buyers right down the street. The dense commercial network allows tech teams to test and perfect their software with enterprise users quickly.
