A Lahore-based startup that promises to replace the scattered chaos of venture fundraising with a single AI-powered platform announced Tuesday it has closed a $4.5 million seed round, co-led by a16z Speedrun and Y Combinator.
Apollo13 Technologies Inc., which operates as Metal and was founded in 2024, builds software that automates the entire fundraising process for founders chasing venture capital. The tool collapses investor databases, CRM systems and round-execution workflows into what the company describes as an "operating system for capital formation." Pioneer Fund, Rebel Fund, Gaingels, Indus Valley Capital, Team Ignite Ventures and Phaze Ventures also joined the round.
The bet here is straightforward: Founders will pay for a unified system rather than juggle half a dozen point solutions. Historically, capital-raising tooling has been fragmented. One platform searches for investors. Another tracks relationships. A third sends update emails. Metal is wagering that an AI-native layer handling discovery, relationship mapping, round execution and post-close investor relations all at once will win.
Whether that thesis holds depends partly on whether the company can sustain the growth it's reporting. Metal claims six consecutive quarters of 30 to 80 percent quarter-over-quarter expansion, self-reported figures not independently verified, and says it's on track to hit multi-million-dollar annual revenue by late next year. The startup also said paying customers have collectively raised $542 million in FY 2026, though the timeframe for that figure wasn't immediately clear.
The platform now serves more than 1,000 founders raising capital each year, according to the company. Series A-stage customers account for over 40 percent of revenue. More than 100 Y Combinator founders have become paying users, Metal's YC profile shows, and the startup said in July that 50-plus a16z Speedrun-backed founders were using the product.
What Metal Actually Does
At its core, the platform stitches together investor discovery, warm-introduction mapping, an embedded CRM and meeting intelligence. An in-app "Round Coach" and communications automation sit on top, the company said. Last month, just before the seed close, Metal launched an Investor Relations product and an automation layer called Autopilot designed to handle repetitive tasks during a funding round.
The company claims that more than 100 rounds close through the platform each year, though it did not specify whether that figure includes free users or only paying customers.
Techstars struck a partnership with Metal in mid-2025 that offers portfolio companies demo access, a week-long trial and 50 percent discounts, according to a Techstars blog post. Metal has since described itself as the "default fundraising platform" for more than 10,000 Techstars-backed founders in materials published this year.
Founder's Track Record
Usman Gul, Metal's founder, brings a mixed resume. He previously co-founded Airlift, a Pakistan-based logistics startup that collapsed in July 2022 during a broader funding crunch, according to TechCrunch. Before that, Gul worked at DoorDash and Marqeta, according to the company's Y Combinator page.
Metal participated in YC's Winter 2023 batch and now employs 21 people, YC data shows. Gul declined to disclose a post-money valuation or detail hiring plans.
"Today marks an important step in our broader ambition: turning software that founders initially adopt while raising capital into infrastructure they continue using throughout the capital formation process," Gul wrote in a LinkedIn post quoted by Profit by Pakistan Today.
A Crowded Field
Metal faces competition from established players and newer entrants alike. Affinity relaunched in August as an "AI-first" relationship-intelligence platform. Foundersuite offers an investor CRM and updates product. Visible.vc focuses on fundraising and investor relations workflows. OpenVC provides a free investor database with outreach tools.
Metal's pitch is that it integrates fundraising, investor relations and automation under a single AI layer, rather than forcing founders to stitch together standalone tools. Whether that integration is compelling enough to command sustained revenue growth remains an open question, particularly as larger enterprise software vendors eye the same opportunity.
