Top 6 AI Startup Angel Investors in the U.S.

In 2024, the artificial intelligence landscape in the US will likely continue to change quickly, and angel investors will be vital for the development and expansion of the AI startup ecosystem. A remarkable $36.7 billion in investment was given to AI companies in the United States in 2023, up from $22.7 billion in 2022, indicating the sector’s durability and promise even in the face of wider economic uncertainty. Significant investments have already been made in the first quarter of 2024, and estimates indicate that by the end of the year, overall investments may increase significantly.

The U.S. continues to dominate the global AI startup scene, accounting for a substantial portion of global AI startup funding. With approximately 5,509 AI startups in the country, the competition for angel investment is fierce, but so are the opportunities. Angel investors are increasingly focusing on verticals within AI, such as healthcare, natural language processing, and visual media, as the market matures beyond general-purpose AI applications

Here are six top AI startup angel investors in the U.S:

Wei Guo – Managing partner at UpHonest Capital and founder of Wei Capital

Wei Guo is a well-known venture capitalist and angel investor from Silicon Valley, California. In addition to being the founder of Wei Capital, he is the founding partner of UpHonest Capital, an early-stage investment firm. More than 70 of the firms in Guo’s portfolio have reached valuations of more than $100 million USD since he began investing in Silicon Valley in 2015. His area of expertise is cross-sector early-stage investments, especially in AI and digital firms. Guo has won various awards, such as being named one of Forbes 30 Under 30 in the Big Money Startups and Venture Capital categories, and being named the top angel investor in Artificial Intelligence by VentureBeat in 2017. His investments are spread throughout a number of industries, such as consumer technology, fintech, healthtech, and AI, demonstrating his wide interest in cutting-edge businesses with promising futures.

AI Startups invested by Wei Guo and Wei Capital :

Checkr: A company that provides automated employee background checks, valued at $4.6 billion.

Hims & Hers: A telehealth platform that went public in 2021.

Rippling: A workforce management software company that raised $200 million at a $13.5 billion valuation.

RoboTerra: An AI company specializing in educational robotics.

MoBagel: A business intelligence solution covering Internet of Things (IoT) data analytics.

Mashgin: A company building self-checkout kiosks using object recognition technology for retail stores.

Jerry Yang – Co-founder of Yahoo and founding partner of AME Cloud Ventures

Jerry Yang, a renowned figure in the tech industry, co-founded Yahoo! in 1994 and served as its CEO from 2007 to 2009. After leaving Yahoo! in 2012, he founded AME Cloud Ventures, a venture capital firm based in Palo Alto, California. AME Cloud Ventures focuses on seed to later-stage companies, particularly those building infrastructure and value chains around data, cloud, and hardware advances. Yang’s extensive experience and network, especially in Asia, have made him a pivotal player in the venture capital landscape, providing not only financial support but also strategic guidance to startups.

AI Startups Invested by Jerry Yang and AME Cloud Ventures:

Nervana Systems: Acquired by Intel in 2016, Nervana Systems was a pioneering AI chip company focused on deep learning and neural network processing.

Atomwise: Specializes in using AI for drug discovery and development, leveraging machine learning to predict molecular interactions.

Viz.ai: Applies AI to medical imaging, facilitating faster and more accurate treatment decisions, particularly in stroke care.

Freenome: Develops AI-powered blood tests for early cancer detection, combining multiomics technology with machine learning to identify cancer at its earliest stages.

Rigetti Computing: An integrated systems company building quantum computers and superconducting quantum processors, aiming to revolutionize computing power through quantum mechanics.

Elementum: Provides an AI-driven workflow automation platform that operates within modern data clouds, enabling businesses to automate processes and derive actionable insights from their data.

Apprente: Developed voice-based conversational AI technology for customer service, which was acquired by McDonald’s in 2019 to enhance its drive-thru experience.

Marc Andreessen – Co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz

Marc Andreessen, co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), is a prominent figure in the venture capital world, known for his early contributions to web technology and his firm’s influential investments in tech startups. Andreessen Horowitz, founded in 2009, has grown to manage over $42 billion in assets and has become a major player in Silicon Valley venture capital. Investments reflect Andreessen Horowitz’s strong focus on AI technologies across various applications, from general-purpose AI to sector-specific solutions in areas like healthcare and software development. The firm’s “American Dynamism 50: AI Edition” highlights their commitment to supporting AI startups that are addressing critical challenges and opportunities in the U.S. market.

AI Startups Invested in by Andreessen Horowitz:

Anthropic: A leading AI research company focused on developing safe and ethical AI systems.

Hugging Face: An open-source platform for building, training, and deploying state-of-the-art machine learning models.

Adept: An AI research and product lab working on general intelligence that can automate any software process.

Replit: A collaborative browser-based IDE that integrates AI capabilities for coding assistance.

Inflection AI: A startup developing AI personal assistants and conversational AI technologies.

Hippocratic AI: A healthcare-focused AI company developing large language models for medical applications.

Mistral AI: A French AI startup working on open-source language models.

Peter Thiel – Co-founder of PayPal and Founders Fund

Peter Thiel, a renowned entrepreneur and venture capitalist, co-founded PayPal in 1998 and later established Founders Fund in 2005. Based in San Francisco, California, Founders Fund has become one of the most influential venture capital firms in Silicon Valley, known for its investments in groundbreaking technologies and disruptive startups. Thiel’s investment philosophy focuses on transformative technologies and visionary entrepreneurs, making significant contributions to the tech industry through his strategic investments and guidance.

AI Startups Invested in by Peter Thiel and Founders Fund:

OpenAI: A leading AI research organization focused on developing artificial general intelligence (AGI) that benefits all of humanity. OpenAI is known for its advanced language models like GPT-3 and GPT-4.

DeepMind: Acquired by Google in 2015, DeepMind is an AI company specializing in deep learning and neural networks, known for its AlphaGo program that defeated a world champion Go player.

Cognition: An AI startup developing a chatbot capable of writing and correcting code. Founders Fund led a $175 million investment in Cognition, valuing the company at $2 billion.

Vicarious: An AI company working on creating machine learning algorithms that mimic the human brain’s computational capabilities, particularly in vision and sensory processing.

Anduril Industries: A defense technology company that leverages AI and machine learning to develop advanced surveillance and defense systems.

Affirm: A fintech company utilizing AI to provide consumer credit and financial services, offering transparent and flexible payment options.

Rigetti Computing: Focuses on building quantum computers and integrating them with AI to solve complex computational problems.

Alexis Ohanian – Co-founder of Reddit and founder of Seven Seven Six

Alexis Ohanian is a prominent entrepreneur and investor, best known as the co-founder of Reddit and the founder of venture capital firm Seven Seven Six. Based in New York, Ohanian has been actively investing in technology startups for over a decade, with a particular focus on artificial intelligence in recent years. Seven Seven Six, founded in 2020, manages over $750 million in assets and has made significant investments across various sectors, including AI.

AI Startups Invested in by Alexis Ohanian and Seven Seven Six:

ScorePlay: An AI-powered media infrastructure platform for sports organizations. Seven Seven Six led a $5 million seed round in July 2023, supporting ScorePlay’s mission to revolutionize media management in sports using AI technology.

Deeptune: An AI startup specializing in voice-based conversational technology. Seven Seven Six participated in Deeptune’s seed round on March 1, 2023, though the investment amount was not disclosed.

The Grand: An executive coaching platform that uses AI to enhance its services. Seven Seven Six led a $4.7 million seed round in September 2023, supporting The Grand’s mission to make coaching more accessible and impactful.

Cognition: While not directly invested by Seven Seven Six, Ohanian has expressed interest in AI coding assistants like Cognition, highlighting the potential of AI in software development.

Naval Ravikant – Founder of AngelList and active AI angel investor

Naval Ravikant is a prominent entrepreneur, investor, and thought leader in the tech industry. Born in New Delhi, India in 1974, he moved to New York at age 9 and later graduated from Dartmouth College with degrees in Computer Science and Economics. Ravikant is best known as the co-founder, chairman, and former CEO of AngelList, a platform that connects startups with investors and job seekers. He has invested in over 200 companies, including notable successes like Uber, Twitter, and Notion. Ravikant is also recognized for his philosophical approach to business, wealth, and happiness.

AI Startups Invested in by Naval Ravikant:

Replit: A collaborative browser-based IDE that integrates AI capabilities for coding assistance. Replit has raised $222 million in total funding.

Perplexity AI: An AI-powered search engine and question-answering system. Perplexity AI has secured $102.3 million in funding.

Anthropic: A leading AI research company focused on developing safe and ethical AI systems. Ravikant participated in their early funding rounds.

Vicarious: An AI company working on creating machine learning algorithms that mimic the human brain’s computational capabilities, particularly in vision and sensory processing.

Clearview AI: A controversial facial recognition company that has raised significant funding and attention in the AI space.