Smaller organizations are just as keen to employ AI to boost sales as larger ones. They frequently lack the IT skills or funding to install enterprise-level solutions like OpenAI or Anthropic.
Darwin AI, a Brazilian AI firm, is creating a conversational AI assistant for Latin American small companies without IT workers who wish to use AI. To boost sales, the assistant interacts with consumers more humanely. If the chat turns sour or into a sales lead, it will bring in a person.
After co-founding Sirena.app, a WhatsApp shared inbox product for mid-market enterprises, Lautaro Schiaffino and Ezequiel Sculli launched this startup. They sold to Zenvia in 2020 after growing the firm to $15 million in recurring income and 25 countries.
Schiaffino and Sculli departed Zenvia in 2022 and discussed their future steps. They intended to serve the same industry and simplify difficult technologies for individuals without the technical team or time to construct anything.
“AI is a great opportunity, but difficult to implement for small businesses,” Schiaffino told Eltrys. As Latin American business-to-consumer discovered there are many leads but poor conversion rates, the midmarket evolved. Sell one product by talking to 100 or 200 leads.”
Schiaffino and Sculli developed Darwin AI’s technology, which links to a company’s customer relationship management platform, assesses sales leads, and elevates the most likely to purchase to a human salesperson. Darwin selects leads and consumers based on the company’s requirements using AI. Schiaffino called it a two-way technology that “talks” to staff and customers to promote key leads.
Conversational AI is predicted to expand by over 20% annually through 2030 as more organizations automate. Rasa, Kore.ai, DXwand, and OpenDialog are among the companies trying to tackle the issue for enterprises.
As it adds users, the corporation configures the AI. Darwin is also close to deploying a self-learning AI feature that can launch a corporation in days without IT personnel.
Since 2023, Darwin has processed hundreds of chats and served consumers in Mexico, Peru, Argentina, Brazil, and Colombia. The business expects over 1 million chats this year. It integrates with Zapier and regional CRMs.
Revenue has been generated since the firm started. Schiaffino said Darwin’s income is unknown, but the creators knew they had success when clients paid before there was a user interface. Darwin charges setup, monthly fixed, and chat use fees. New plan levels are coming this year.
Pre-seed and seed rounds generated $2.5 million for Darwin. Canary led the latest $2.1 million round with H20 Capital Innovation, Dalus Capital, FJ Labs, and Latitude Capital.
Schiaffino said the cash would go to product research, go-to-market, and operations to ensure product quality.
