30 standout AI startups from Y Combinator

Y Combinator has bet the farm on AI. In the last three batches, 417 of the 502 startups have been AI-focused. That’s 83% of startups. Quick maths.

I spent the last week combing through YC’s startup directory, looking at some of the most interesting AI startups from the W25, F24 and S24 batches (I need a hobby, I know).

Here are 30 of my favourites, broken down into key categories:

1. Tooling for agents

YC is betting heavily that AI agents are the future. Their recent request for startups included a couple of agent-related asks. If agents are going to be everywhere, then they’re going to need lots of tooling to work better. Bullish on startups building picks and shovels for agents.

• Abundant AI – One of the coolest startups on this list. They basically hand agent tasks off to a real person when the agent fails. A really interesting way to ensure high-quality output while using agents as much as possible.

• Lucidic AI – A full testing platform for AI agents that allows you to simulate workflows, debug issues, and improve reliability. As AI agents become more widespread, tools like this will be critical.

• A1Base – A really interesting concept. It gives AI agents an online identity (with a phone number and an email) so they can use real-world tools like WhatsApp, Slack, and more.

2. Hardware & data centres

We need better hardware and more infrastructure to support AI progress. YC knows this and is funding lots of startups in the space.

• Exa Laboratories – Energy-efficient AI chips. Reducing energy costs for AI models is a massive challenge.

• NetworkOcean – Underwater data centres. Wild.

• StarCloud – Data centres in space. Even wilder.

3. Language tooling for AI

A good chunk of the world doesn’t speak English as a first language, but LLMs are mostly trained on the English-language internet. YC has funded a couple of interesting companies tackling this problem.

• Mundo AI – Directly improves non-English language models by providing better training data. This could make LLM applications far more useful globally.

• Pinch – A video conferencing tool that delivers split-second translations for live calls. Real-time AI translation could be a game-changer for global teams.

4. Email & productivity

AI has massive potential in productivity, especially in making mundane, everyday tasks faster and smoother. Email, in particular, is still a disaster, and AI might finally be able to fix it.

• Friday – An AI email assistant that promises you’ll never have to touch your inbox again. Interesting features include voice control, action item tracking, and custom automations.

  • This is one of three AI email tools that YC have funded recently.

• Peppr AI – An AI-powered knowledge base that pulls information from all your tools into one self-improving hub. If you’ve ever worked at a startup, you know how badly this is needed.

• Focus Buddy – An AI productivity coach that stays in calls with you to help keep you focused on important tasks. Our attention spans are at an all-time low. Love FocusBuddy’s approach to helping us get more done.

5. Talent & HR

AI for Talent and HR is a space that’s exploding. YC knows this and is investing in some really interesting companies.

• Spott – AI for executive search, tackling one of the hardest recruiting problems. High-stakes hiring needs smarter, faster decision-making, and AI might be the key.

• Vovana – An AI recruiter that conducts phone interviews for frontline hiring. Narrow positioning is smart - frontline hiring has its own unique challenges.

• Lightscreen AI – AI-powered coding assessments using voice and video. As candidates start using AI to cheat on tests, screening tools will have to evolve. Video + voice is a smart way to do that.

6. Education

EdTech is a really exciting space for AI. We don’t all learn the same way. Using AI to tailor the learning experience to individual needs is a winner.

• StudyDojo – An AI-powered exam prep tutor that adapts to each student.

• GradeWiz – An AI teaching assistant designed to help teachers grade students and give feedback more efficiently. Teachers are swamped. Tools that help them be more productive could be big.

• Miyagi Labs – Uses AI to transform YouTube content into interactive courses. I love this. It takes one mode of learning and turns it into another. This could be a really big space.

7. Research

Research is a broad space, and YC has funded lots of AI startups in it. The two areas that were most interesting to me are scientific research and financial research.

• Unriddle – AI for scientific research, helping scientists analyze papers and generate insights.

• Fira – An AI agent for financial research. Hedge funds and analysts will pay big for anything that gives them an edge.

8. Product & QA

AI is changing how we build, test and improve products. Great to see YC funding startups here.

• Ficra – A product analytics tool that maps every real user journey, not just the happy paths.

• Conveo – AI-powered qualitative research. This space is heating up, and Conveo looks like an interesting entry.

• Fix AI – An AI agent that finds bugs for you. Automated front-end QA testing will save teams loads of time.

  • YC have invested in a few other QA agents. Bullish on this space.

9. AI for customer teams

YC is investing in productivity tools for customer-facing teams, which is far more interesting than yet another AI SDR tool.

• Solidroad – AI-powered hiring and training for sales and success teams. Great to see an Irish startup on this list.

• Telli – AI-powered voice agent for B2C sales and support.

• Canvas – An AI co-pilot for customer success teams. The promise here is that it uncovers risks and opportunities to improve retention and expansion. Big opportunity if they deliver on that promise.

10. Healthcare

Healthcare is an absolutely massive opportunity. A lot of it is very inefficient. It’s great to see YC funding AI startups in this space.

• Kairo Health – AI that reduces the admin burden on healthcare workers.

• Toothy AI – Automates back-office operations for dental clinics. Vertical applications of AI will be a real winner. Dental clinics are a cool place to do that.

• SimCare AI – Simulates conversations with AI patients to train healthcare workers. Very interesting approach to medical training.

11. Construction

Construction is another massive industry, and it’s good to see YC investing in startups that impact the real world.

• Merlin AI – A fully AI-powered ERP for construction companies. Construction is a notoriously offline industry, so this feels like a big opportunity.

• Bild AI – Looks really cool—it can read construction blueprints and extract costs for builders.

I spent way, way too much time looking through these startups, but it’s fascinating to see where YC is placing its bets.

Any other startups you’d add to the list?