Startups to watch this autumn: 8 early-stage startups raising seed funding

This list highlights eight early-stage startups that recently announced seed and pre-seed funding rounds. The featured companies develop technologies spanning artificial intelligence, robotics, local device computing, and fintech infrastructure.

We curated this selection by reviewing recent public investment announcements from tech news sources. Each entry details what the company builds, its latest funding round, lead investors, and the source reporting.

1. Nyquis

Nyquis builds AI grid sensors designed to detect hidden faults. The California startup raised a $6.3 million seed round co-led by Gigascale Capital and South Park Commons. Source: techbuzz.ai

2. Shackleton AI

Shackleton AI develops an AI agent platform for construction management. The New York startup emerged from stealth with a $5 million seed round led by Battery Ventures. Source: techbuzz.ai

3. Lombard Systems

Lombard Systems builds lending infrastructure for tokenized assets. The fintech raised $4 million led by Ethereal Ventures to advance its Delivery-versus-Lock standard. Source: techbuzz.ai

4. Bleu Robotics

Bleu Robotics trains foundational models for robots using abductive learning techniques. The French startup raised a $5.6 million pre-seed round co-led by Contrarian Ventures. Source: automate.org

5. Athena

Athena Circle Corp. automates commercial real estate deals through legal AI technology. The startup raised $2.5 million in pre-seed funding led by a16z Speedrun. Source: siliconangle.com

6. Cowboy

Cowboy operates a platform allowing developers to build, deploy, and monetize autonomous AI agents. The New York startup launched out of stealth with $5 million in seed funding. Source: citybiz.co

7. Sumary

Sumary builds AI accounting software to automate tasks for audit and advisory firms. The European startup raised a $25 million seed round led by Singular. Source: shattered.io

8. Cephable

Cephable develops enterprise AI agents designed to execute directly on local devices. The startup raised $7 million in seed funding to expand its technology. Source: axios.com