On Sunday, a pioneering startup emerged victorious in Madrona Venture Labs’ startup formation competition, dedicated to aiding data teams within consumer packaged goods companies (CPG) in the analysis and visualization of their data through an artificial intelligence platform.
NoxuData secured $250,000 in pre-seed funding, complemented by valuable mentorship from industry experts, entrepreneurs, and investors. The week-long event, named “Launchable: Generative Apps,” aimed to catalyze the creation of “venture-scalable startups.”
At the helm of this venture is co-founder Dae Kim, based in Seattle. Prior to this endeavor, he held the position of a corporate strategy manager at Microsoft, specializing in AI, and served as a consumer packaged goods strategy consultant at L.E.K. Consulting. He collaborates with David Lee, located in New York, who previously co-founded and led engineering at Seek AI, and also worked as a senior software engineer at Oracle.
NoxuData’s primary objective is to empower business teams within CPG companies to access data and produce insightful analyses. The company addresses the challenge of fragmented and siloed CPG data from sources like NielsenIQ and IRI, which necessitate manual data retrieval and sifting.
NoxuData offers an AI platform featuring a conversational dashboard interface for query responses and data visualization. It goes beyond financial metrics to provide insights considering dynamic factors like foot traffic, website visits, and even weather alerts. For instance, users can inquire about the reasons for declining sales in southern California, receiving context-driven responses to facilitate decision-making. The platform also incorporates a layer of quality assurance through human monitoring for low-confidence responses.
The company identifies a substantial market opportunity of $10 billion in the U.S. Currently, NoxuData has five customers, primarily startups, with three engaged in paid pilot programs. It has secured undisclosed capital from investors like Gold House Ventures and other incubators.
NoxuData faces competition from startups like Seek AI, as well as established players like Snowflake and Salesforce.
Dae Kim, during the startup’s pitch on Demo Day, emphasized their strategy for success, highlighting their specialization in the CPG sector and their commitment to building trust through an extra layer of quality assurance via human monitoring in the AI platform.
A panel of judges, including Rajko Radovanovic (partner at a16z), Tina Hoang-To (founding general partner at Kin Ventures), and Jon Turow (partner at Madrona), evaluated the event.
The seventh edition of the Launchable event, organized by Seattle-based startup studio Madrona Venture Labs, brought together more than 40 mentors, 50 founders representing 11 teams, and over 100 investors who participated in the demo day, both in person and via live stream.
The previous year’s winner, Storia AI, is developing generative artificial intelligence tools tailored for filmmakers and TV show producers. It is deeply integrated into its model. Another past winner, the Seattle-based engineering productivity startup UpLevel, secured $20 million in venture capital funding last year.
Madrona Venture Labs also raised $11 million for its fifth fund earlier this year.
