For the past twelve years, Forbes has collaborated with TrueBridge Capital Partners to showcase promising startups poised to achieve unicorn status, defined as companies valued at less than $1 billion and backed by venture capital, all based in the United States. Notably, almost all the startups featured in this year's list incorporate artificial intelligence, exploring a wide array of fields from healthcare solutions for bone marrow transplants and biological threats to cybersecurity enhancements and innovative design applications. Historically, the list has yielded impressive results, with 60% of the 275 previous honorees reaching unicorn status, including notable names like Duolingo and DoorDash. Another 60 companies have either been acquired or merged, while nearly half of last year's selections are already valued at over $1 billion. Of the startups that were previously listed, only six have failed, a mere 2%.
**Abby Care** - **Founder**: Havi Nguyen - **Investors**: Khosla Ventures, Sequoia Capital, Thrive Capital - **Equity Raised**: $45 million - **Valuation**: $225 million
Havi Nguyen, a 26-year-old founder and daughter of Vietnamese immigrants, had firsthand experience managing Medicaid for her family while working at her parents' nail salon. Inspired by her work at a therapy startup, she founded Abby Care in 2021, aiming to train families to become paid caregivers for loved ones with disabilities or age-related needs, funded through Medicaid. Supported by major investors, the company provides caregivers with an app that streamlines documentation and offers AI assistance, and aims to create a marketplace for care similar to services like Uber for drivers.
**American Terawatt** - **Founders**: Ron Bhattacharyay, Ricky Moezinia, Rob Parker, Anton Troynikov (CEO) - **Investors**: Altimeter Capital, Founders Fund - **Equity Raised**: $52 million - **Valuation**: $350 million
This San Francisco startup is developing a direct current power grid to more efficiently supply energy to AI data centers. As most electronic devices require stable DC power, American Terawatt believes that reducing the loss of energy during conversion from AC to DC through a network of underground transmission lines will greatly increase efficiency in powering AI technologies. CEO Anton Troynikov previously co-founded Chroma, a vector database for AI applications.
**Clair** - **Founders**: Alex Kostecki, Erich Nussbaumer, Nico Simko (CEO) - **Investors**: Founder Collective, Kairos, Thrive Capital, Upfront Ventures, Walkabout Ventures - **Equity Raised**: $69 million - **Valuation**: $145 million
To address the financial hardships faced by hourly wage workers during unexpected expenses, Clair was established in 2019. The platform enables users to access portions of their salaries before payday by verifying employment and estimating earnings using existing payroll systems.
**Cogent Security** - **Founders**: Thanos Baskous, Vineet Edupuganti (CEO), Geng Sng - **Investors**: Bain Capital Ventures, Greylock - **Equity Raised**: $53 million - **Valuation**: $320 million
Cogent’s AI technology identifies security vulnerabilities, prioritizes them, and guides IT departments in remediation. Founded by former employees of Abnormal, a unicorn in AI email security, the company counts enterprises like Valvoline and the University of the Pacific as part of its client base.
**Crosby** - **Founders**: Ryan Daniels (CEO), John Sarihan - **Investors**: Bain Capital Ventures, Index Ventures, Lux Capital, Sequoia Capital - **Equity Raised**: $85 million - **Valuation**: $400 million
At this AI law firm in New York City, lawyers manage AI-driven agents that review contracts and NDAs, providing feedback without the need for intensive document examination. Crosby offers its services for a flat fee, contrasting traditional law practices that charge by the hour.
**DepthFirst** - **Founders**: Andrea Michi, Qasim Mithani (CEO), Daniele Perito - **Investors**: Accel, Meritech Capital - **Equity Raised**: $120 million - **Valuation**: $580 million
DepthFirst develops AI models aimed at identifying vulnerabilities in essential software systems, a response to the increasing sophistication of AI hacking. Started by alumni of well-known tech companies, DepthFirst aims to preemptively combat AI-related cybersecurity threats.
**Elorian AI** - **Founders**: Andrew Dai (CEO), Seth Neel, Yinfei Yang - **Investors**: Altimeter Capital, Menlo Ventures, Striker Venture Partners - **Equity Raised**: $55 million - **Valuation**: $300 million
Elorian AI, launched in April, focuses on creating AI that can visualize three-dimensional environments, enhancing applications in robotics, engineering, and household decision-making.
**FleetWorks** - **Founders**: Paul Singer (CEO), Quang Tran - **Investors**: First Round Capital - **Equity Raised**: $17 million - **Valuation**: $75 million
FleetWorks aims to connect freight brokers and carriers efficiently using AI agents that handle job bookings via communication methods like phone calls and text messages.
**Flora** - **Founders**: Alex Li, Weber Wong (CEO) - **Investors**: Hanabi, Redpoint Ventures - **Equity Raised**: $52 million - **Valuation**: $260 million
After witnessing a gap in AI use within creative fields, Flora's founders developed software tools enabling real-time collaboration among design teams to enhance productivity in generating visuals for branding and marketing.
**Fortell Research** - **Founders**: Andrew Casper, Matthew de Jonge (CEO), Igor Lovchinsky, Cole Morris - **Investors**: Founders Fund, Thrive Capital, Valor Equity Partners - **Equity Raised**: $163 million - **Valuation**: $740 million
Fortell Research is revolutionizing hearing aids, enabling users to distinguish relevant sounds amidst background noise, inspired by the challenges faced by the founder's grandparents. Their devices, which have received substantial acclaim, are currently available at select clinics.
**Gumloop** - **Founders**: Rahul Behal, Max Brodeur-Urbas (CEO) - **Investors**: Benchmark, First Round Capital, Nexus Venture Partners - **Equity Raised**: $70 million - **Valuation**: $300 million
Founded in 2023, Gumloop provides a platform that empowers non-technical users to tackle their own technical issues without needing expert intervention, gaining traction with clients like Shopify.
**Juicebox** - **Founders**: Ishan Gupta, David Paffenholz (CEO) - **Investors**: DST Global, NFDG, Sequoia Capital - **Equity Raised**: $116 million - **Valuation**: $850 million
Juicebox enhances recruitment processes by aggregating public information about potential candidates, streamlining searches for companies overwhelmed by the volume of applicants.
**Lotus Health** - **Founders**: KJ Dhaliwal (CEO), Zekka Nelson - **Investors**: CRV, Kleiner Perkins - **Equity Raised**: $41 million - **Valuation**: $150 million
Lotus Health seeks to transform health care accessibility by offering free, virtual primary care services in over 50 languages. The app relies on trained medical professionals and aims to support larger patient bases than traditional models allow.
**Netic** - **Founder**: Melisa Tokmak (CEO) - **Investors**: Founders Fund, Greylock - **Equity Raised**: $43 million - **Valuation**: $450 million
After facing a frustrating experience with home repairs, Melisa Tokmak founded Netic, an AI-driven service that assists customers in diagnosing problems and arranging service appointments in the trades sector.
**Ossium Health** - **Founders**: Kevin Caldwell (CEO), Erik Woods - **Investors**: CPMG, First Round Capital, General Catalyst, Vivo Capital - **Equity Raised**: $158 million - **Valuation**: $300 million
Ossium Health is pioneering the world's first bone marrow bank designed to provide critical transplants swiftly, utilizing donated marrow to aid patients battling blood cancers.
**Outtake** - **Founder**: Alex Arjun Dhillon (CEO) - **Investors**: CRV, ICONIQ Growth - **Equity Raised**: $60 million - **Valuation**: $375 million
Alex Dhillon created Outtake to combat the increasing number of fraudulent deepfakes online, developing an AI tool that analyzes media to determine authenticity and provides organizations with risk assessments.
**Pace** - **Founder**: Jamie Cuffe (CEO) - **Investors**: Sequoia Capital, Thrive Capital - **Equity Raised**: $55 million - **Valuation**: $375 million
Pace aims to streamline the insurance claims process impacted by extreme weather events, utilizing AI agents to handle claims and renewals efficiently, helping companies like Prudential Financial manage processes more effectively.
**Rillet** - **Founders**: Nicolas Kopp (CEO), Stelios Modes - **Investors**: Andreessen Horowitz, Creandum, First Round Capital, ICONIQ, Sequoia Capital - **Equity Raised**: $110 million - **Valuation**: $500 million
Addressing the need for timely financial information, Rillet employs AI to expedite accounting processes, providing businesses with real-time financial insights rather than waiting on human accountants.
**Roadrunner** - **Founders**: Joubin Mirzadegan (CEO), Ajay Natarajan, Eugene Shao - **Investors**: Founders Fund, Kleiner Perkins - **Equity Raised**: $27 million - **Valuation**: $200 million
Roadrunner is focused on simplifying the sales process by allowing sales teams to create quotes rapidly based on client requests through its intelligent automation system.
**Valthos** - **Founders**: Kathleen McMahon (CEO), Tess van Stekelenburg - **Investors**: Founders Fund, Lux Capital, OpenAI - **Equity Raised**: $30 million - **Valuation**: $200 million
Valthos is dedicated to detecting and addressing biological threats using AI to characterize pathogens. By predicting mutations, the company aims to equip health organizations with strategies for countering potential risks.
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