Union.ai outlines growth plans after raising $19.1M

Bellevue's artificial intelligence company Union.ai raised $19.1 million in a Series A round.

Ketan Umare, CEO and co-founder of Union.ai, said that with the funding announced on Wednesday, the company aims to expand its 34-person staff to 45-50 people in the next year. The company employs about 20 people in Bellevue, and also allows remote working.

"I measure the size of our community most importantly." Umare explained that the community is made up of open-source users as well as commercial users. "That is the most important metric we are working to increase."

Union.ai was founded in 2021 and offers a wide range of tools that help companies create artificial intelligence. It can also help users with specific functions. Umare compares the Union.ai platform to a chef or kitchen. Union.ai is the infrastructure that holds it all together.

Union.ai has a free and a paid version. Union.ai manages the technology in both versions. Umare stated that Union.ai is used by about 400 companies. The company's website lists users like LinkedIn, Lyft, and HBO.

Union.ai, according to Umare, does not have immediate plans for expansion of its Bellevue office despite Union.ai's growth.

NEA Ventures and Nava Ventures funded the project. NEA invested in fintech companies such as Robinhood (which is listed on Nasdaq) and Plaid ($13,4 billion valued in 2021).

Umare said Union.ai wanted to show that AI technology can be fun and simple, and not just difficult and complex.