November 15, 2024
It’s no secret that the increasingly rapid evolution of AI tools is changing the workplace landscape, yet many organisations struggle to effectively implement these technologies across teams. Our portfolio company, Team-GPT, addresses this challenge with its innovative business collaboration tool that is transforming how teams work together using generative AI.
What makes Team-GPT unique is their comprehensive approach that combines team collaboration tools with essential training content. While many tools focus solely on implementation, Team-GPT recognises that successful AI adoption requires both the right tools and proper training to upskill workforces.
A Stellar Founding Team
When evaluating early-stage investments, the founding team is critical - and Team-GPT's founding team impressed us from day one, combining technical expertise, product development experience, and financial know-how.
Co-founder & CEO Iliya Valchanov brings his technical background, leadership skills, and proven ability to build successful products to Team-GPT. With experience founding 365 Data Science, and creating one of the most popular AI/ML Udemy courses, reaching 1.5M students globally, Iliya is well-positioned to lead the company's growth. Co-founder & CTO Ilko Kacharov has over 15 years of software engineering experience. His expertise in team leadership and full-stack product development ensures Team-GPT can execute its technical goals. Meanwhile, Co-founder & Software Developer Yavor Belakov has extensive product development experience from working with Iliya and Ilko at previous ventures. He is also currently leading Team-GPT's community efforts and engagement with technical users. COO & CFO Katya Vaptsarova rounds out the team with her financial expertise. Her experience working with Iliya at their previous startup and managing financial data for clinical trials provides the operational structure and financial discipline needed for Team-GPT’s sustainable growth.
The founding team has successfully worked together previously, showcasing their ability to collaborate and execute effectively - a quality we highly value at Pact. Their deep understanding of both AI technology and educational content creation gives them a unique angle in this market.
Why We Invested
Team-GPT aligns perfectly with our Betterment investment theme, which focuses on technology that provides personal and professional development. As the workforce adapts to the AI revolution, upskilling employees is essential.
Recent studies show generative AI can increase workforce productivity by an average of 14%, with some companies reporting improvements of up to 400%. With two-thirds of occupations potentially facing partial automation, upskilling employees to work alongside AI is now more critical than ever. Team-GPT is cleverly positioned at the intersection of two major trends: the need for organisations to adopt AI tools efficiently, and the requirement to upskill workforces to leverage these tools effectively. Early to market in the AI collaboration space, Team-GPT has quickly established itself as a leader, and is primed to scale in a capital efficient way.
Unlike competitors tied to specific models, Team-GPT works with any LLM (ChatGPT, Azure, Gemini, Claude, LLaMa, or custom LLMs), giving them a significant advantage with enterprise customers who have specific security and compliance requirements. Their educational approach is particularly valuable as 57% of employees report receiving insufficient AI training from employers, despite 40% of workforces needing to reskill as AI becomes implemented over the next three years.
You can learn more about Team-GPT here, or book a product demo here.
Looking Ahead
We're thrilled to be backing Team-GPT in this seed round alongside True Ventures, and we're actively supporting the team’s enterprise sales strategy through our international network, facilitating introductions to potential clients across Europe, the US, and MENA markets. And we’re having a great time doing it - here’s Reem with Owais and Iliya on a business trip in Saudi.
With their vendor-agnostic approach, strong founding team, and capital-efficient growth model, Team-GPT is well-positioned to become a leader in the workplace AI collaboration space. We're excited to be part of their journey as they help organisations worldwide harness the power of AI through effective collaboration and training.