2025 Startup News: Tavily Raises $25M with Steps to Connect AI Agents to the Web

The startup ecosystem continues to flourish in 2025 with exciting innovations and funding announcements. One of the most prominent news items this year comes from Tavily, an AI-focused company aiming to onboard the next billion AI agents to the web. Tavily has successfully raised $25 million in funding, including a $20 million Series A led by Insight Partners, to catalyze their mission of connecting AI agents to the web in enterprise-compliant ways.

This article not only dives into Tavily’s fundraising achievements but also offers key insights into the booming AI startup sector, provides actionable tips for entrepreneurs, and explores tools that startup founders can leverage, including PlayPal and F/MS applications for EU grants.

Tavily’s Mission to Revolutionize AI Agents

Founded in 2024 by Rotem Weiss, Tavily emerged from the viral open-source project GPT Researcher, which enabled AI agents to fetch live web data, a feature that garnered over 20,000 stars on GitHub. Tavily’s technology is designed for enterprise use, focusing on compliance and governance as enterprises integrate AI agents that require web access.

Problem Solved: While AI agents increasingly gain popularity in sales, finance, and customer research, most are not yet connected to the internet in ways that adhere to strict company policies. Tavily bridges this gap with tools that allow enterprises to benefit from live web searches while maintaining data security and adherence to company-specific rules.

Key Customers and Technology

Some of Tavily’s early adopters include Groq, Cohere, MongoDB, and Writer. Their compliance-ready system allows AI agents to search, crawl, and extract insights from both public and private sources, securely and efficiently.

A Lesson for Startups: Funding and Scaling

Tavily’s fundraising success is instructive for other AI startups looking to scale their operations. Here are some steps and tools that startups can explore to navigate funding and scale effectively:

Step-by-Step Guide to Scaling a Startup

Validate Your Idea: Startups should establish a clear problem-solution fit. If you're a startup founder, you can use the F/MS Sandbox, a platform designed to validate startup ideas with the assistance of an AI co-founder called PlayPal. Learn more about PlayPal through the AI co-founder feature.
Find the Right Grant: Funding can often determine the trajectory of a startup. Entrepreneurs can use the F/MS AI Grant Finder and Application Writer to quickly identify EU grants for startups and draft application proposals. This AI-driven tool simplifies accessing non-dilutive funding.
Attract Investors: Tavily’s strategic partnerships with Insight Partners and Alpha Wave underscore the importance of forming trustworthy investor relationships. Networking via startup incubators or accelerators, such as Fe/male Switch’s ecosystem, can open doors to potential investors.
Focus on Governance and Compliance: Tavily’s emphasis on policy adherence is an invaluable lesson for scaling startups; being enterprise-ready means aligning with data governance requirements from day one. Look into platforms that help startups understand legal agreements, such as AI Startup Lawyer, designed for early-stage entrepreneurs to navigate contracts and compliance easily.

Mistakes to Avoid as a Startup Founder

Skipping Idea Validation: Many founders rush into the market without validating their problem-solution fit. Use tools like PlayPal or the F/MS Sandbox to gain valuable feedback from AI and peers alike.
Ignoring Legal Agreements: Never sign agreements blindly; platforms like AI Startup Lawyer are perfect for reviewing term sheets or shareholder contracts to avoid costly mistakes.
Overlooking Alternative Funding: Grants can be an overlooked funding source as founders chase equity deals. Utilize the F/MS EU Grant Finder for non-dilutive options.

From Tavily to PlayPal: A Look at Startup-Friendly AI Tools

1. PlayPal: Your AI Co-Founder

PlayPal, created by Violetta Bonenkamp, is an AI tool that acts as a virtual friend and co-founder. Perfect for founders navigating complex decisions, PlayPal provides advice, language learning, mental health support, and more. Learn more about PlayPal on the Fe/Male Switch platform.

2. F/MS AI Grant Finder

Grant writing can be daunting, but the F/MS AI Grant Finder enables entrepreneurs to identify suitable EU grants and draft applications, saving valuable time.

3. AI Startup Lawyer

Focused on early-stage startups, AI Startup Lawyer helps founders understand legal jargon and review critical agreements. Perfect for navigating shareholder clauses, term sheets, and incubator contracts without hiring expensive professionals.

Inspirational Spotlight: Violetta Bonenkamp

Violetta Bonenkamp, founder of Fe/male Switch, is an example of resilience and innovation in the startup ecosystem. With 20+ years of experience, multiple academic degrees, and expertise in linguistics and AI, her gamepreneurship model reshapes how aspiring entrepreneurs learn and launch their ventures. She has been instrumental in enabling women worldwide to enter the fields of deeptech and STEM.

Conclusion: Preparing for Billion-Scale Opportunities

As Tavily secures $25 million to connect AI agents to the web, it unveils the enormous growth potential in enterprise AI. Entrepreneurs can learn valuable lessons from Tavily’s emphasis on compliance and scalability while leveraging platforms like PlayPal and F/MS tools to accelerate their startup journeys.

In summary, advancements like Tavily’s infrastructure for AI governance and tools like PlayPal for personal and professional support represent the convergence of innovative technology and entrepreneurial ambition. Now is the time for startups to embrace these resources and target their own transformative goals.

FAQ

1. What is Tavily's mission?

Tavily aims to connect AI agents to the web in enterprise-compliant ways, ensuring governance, data security, and adherence to company policies as enterprises integrate AI agents. Learn more about Tavily

2. How much funding has Tavily raised so far?

Tavily has raised $25 million in total, including a $20 million Series A funding led by Insight Partners. Read about Tavily's funding

3. Who are Tavily’s key customers?

Tavily’s notable customers include Groq, Cohere, MongoDB, and Writer, who use Tavily’s tools for secure and efficient data extraction. Discover Tavily's technology

4. Who founded Tavily, and what inspired it?

Tavily was founded in 2024 by Rotem Weiss, emerging from the viral open-source GPT Researcher project, which fetched live web data for AI agents. Learn about Tavily's founder

5. What makes Tavily’s technology unique?

Tavily provides a compliance-ready system that allows AI agents to securely access and extract insights from public and private sources, adhering to enterprise governance policies. Explore Tavily's API features

6. How is Tavily addressing industry challenges?

Tavily solves the issue of AI agents accessing live web data in non-compliant ways by offering secure, policy-adherent tools tailored for enterprises. Read about Tavily's mission

7. What industry trends are driving Tavily’s growth?

The increasing demand for real-time, web-connected AI agents in sectors like finance and sales is accelerating Tavily's expansion. Learn about trends in AI governance

8. What is the significance of Tavily’s compliance-first approach?

Tavily prioritizes enterprise requirements such as data security, legal compliance, and auditable policies, making it a standout in AI web connectivity. Explore Tavily’s compliance solutions

9. How can startups use tools like PlayPal and F/MS AI Grant Finder?

PlayPal acts as an AI co-founder for validation and advice, while the F/MS AI Grant Finder helps startups secure EU grant funding easily. Learn about PlayPal | Discover F/MS AI Grant Finder

10. What lessons can startups learn from Tavily’s success?

Startups can benefit by focusing on governance, validating ideas through tools like PlayPal, and exploring alternative funding sources such as grants. Explore scaling tips from Tavily

About the Author

Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. Throughout her startup experience she has applied for multiple startup grants at the EU level, in the Netherlands and Malta, and her startups received quite a few of those. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.

Violetta is a true multiple specialist who has built expertise in Linguistics, Education, Business Management, Blockchain, Entrepreneurship, Intellectual Property, Game Design, AI, SEO, Digital Marketing, cyber security and zero code automations. Her extensive educational journey includes a Master of Arts in Linguistics and Education, an Advanced Master in Linguistics from Belgium (2006-2007), an MBA from Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden (2006-2008), and an Erasmus Mundus joint program European Master of Higher Education from universities in Norway, Finland, and Portugal (2009).

She is the founder of Fe/male Switch, a startup game that encourages women to enter STEM fields, and also leads CADChain, and multiple other projects like the Directory of 1,000 Startup Cities with a proprietary MeanCEO Index that ranks cities for female entrepreneurs. Violetta created the "gamepreneurship" methodology, which forms the scientific basis of her startup game. She also builds a lot of SEO tools for startups. Her achievements include being named one of the top 100 women in Europe by EU Startups in 2022 and being nominated for Impact Person of the year at the Dutch Blockchain Week. She is an author with Sifted and a speaker at different Universities. Recently she published a book on Startup Idea Validation the right way: from zero to first customers and beyond and launched a Directory of 1,500+ websites for startups to list themselves in order to gain traction and build backlinks.

Violetta Bonenkamp's expertise in CAD sector, IP protection and blockchain

Violetta Bonenkamp is recognized as a multidisciplinary expert with significant achievements in the CAD sector, intellectual property (IP) protection, and blockchain technology.

CAD Sector:

Violetta is the CEO and co-founder of CADChain, a deep tech startup focused on developing IP management software specifically for CAD (Computer-Aided Design) data. CADChain addresses the lack of industry standards for CAD data protection and sharing, using innovative technology to secure and manage design data.
She has led the company since its inception in 2018, overseeing R&D, PR, and business development, and driving the creation of products for platforms such as Autodesk Inventor, Blender, and SolidWorks.
Her leadership has been instrumental in scaling CADChain from a small team to a significant player in the deeptech space, with a diverse, international team.

IP Protection:

Violetta has built deep expertise in intellectual property, combining academic training with practical startup experience. She has taken specialized courses in IP from institutions like WIPO and the EU IPO.
She is known for sharing actionable strategies for startup IP protection, leveraging both legal and technological approaches, and has published guides and content on this topic for the entrepreneurial community.
Her work at CADChain directly addresses the need for robust IP protection in the engineering and design industries, integrating cybersecurity and compliance measures to safeguard digital assets.

Blockchain:

Violetta’s entry into the blockchain sector began with the founding of CADChain, which uses blockchain as a core technology for securing and managing CAD data.
She holds several certifications in blockchain and has participated in major hackathons and policy forums, such as the OECD Global Blockchain Policy Forum.
Her expertise extends to applying blockchain for IP management, ensuring data integrity, traceability, and secure sharing in the CAD industry.

For the past several years Violetta has been living between the Netherlands and Malta, while also regularly traveling to different destinations around the globe, usually due to her entrepreneurial activities. This has led her to start writing about different locations and amenities from the POV of an entrepreneur. Here’s her recent article about best hotels in Italy to work from.

About the Publication

Fe/male Switch is an innovative startup platform designed to empower women entrepreneurs through an immersive, game-like experience. Founded in 2020 during the pandemic "without any funding and without any code," this non-profit initiative has evolved into a comprehensive educational tool for aspiring female entrepreneurs.The platform was co-founded by Violetta Shishkina-Bonenkamp, who serves as CEO and one of the lead authors of the Startup News branch. The Fe/male Switch team is located in several countries, including the Netherlands and Malta.

Mission and Purpose

Fe/male Switch Foundation was created to address the gender gap in the tech and entrepreneurship space. The platform aims to skill-up future female tech leaders and empower them to create resilient and innovative tech startups through what they call "gamepreneurship". By putting players in a virtual startup village where they must survive and thrive, the startup game allows women to test their entrepreneurial abilities without financial risk.

Key Features

The platform offers a unique blend of news, resources,learning, networking, and practical application within a supportive, female-focused environment:

Skill Lab: Micro-modules covering essential startup skills
Virtual Startup Building: Create or join startups and tackle real-world challenges
AI Co-founder (PlayPal): Guides users through the startup process
SANDBOX: A testing environment for idea validation before launch
Wellness Integration: Virtual activities to balance work and self-care
Marketplace: Buy or sell expert sessions and tutorials

Impact and Growth

Since its inception, Fe/male Switch has shown impressive growth:

3,000+ female entrepreneurs in the community
100+ startup tools built
5,000+ pieces of articles and news written

Partnerships

Fe/male Switch has formed strategic partnerships to enhance its offerings. In January 2022, it teamed up with global website builder Tilda to provide free access to website building tools and mentorship services for Fe/male Switch participants.

Recognition

Fe/male Switch has received media attention for its innovative approach to closing the gender gap in tech entrepreneurship. The platform has been featured in various publications highlighting its unique "play to learn and earn" model.