Everyone is talking about “vibe coding” (using LLMs to code apps, websites and so on), but no one is talking about “vibe business.” This is perhaps because all startups, to varying extents, are vibe businesses—operating on unspoken built-if-sold and ask-for-forgiveness-not-permission principles. But one startup founder is trying to monetize this reality.
“You just need to give us some general ideas on what to do, what to sell, what’s your goal and we’ll handle the rest,” says Xiaoyin Qu, founder of HeyBoss.AI, which helps clients build websites and businesses with teams of AI avatar executives. “We’re essentially a technology digital team for any business…with particular agents that have particular functions.”
Qu recently garnered attention for making an AI avatar to be her own company’s CEO and having it assist in negotiations for HeyBoss’$3.5 million seed round led by OpenAI Startup Fund.
HeyBoss aims to staff its customers’ businesses with similar AI employees, each customized for different roles and based on specific criteria—say, a designer named Nova with UX/UI skills and an artistic personality, or a brand strategist who can synthesize competitor strategies. These digital employees are essentially chatbots that a business owner converses and collaborates with from the PC or smartphone, similar to the way you might use ChatGPT. According to Qu, HeyBoss’s virtual employees are built with LLMs from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google, as well as proprietary models.
When I met Qu over Zoom, HeyBoss.AI’s avatar CEO Astra, a red-skinned woman with striking blue eyes and donning a bodysuit, was positioned in a still frame on the wall behind her. “She’s faster, smarter, and more reliable than any human executive I’ve worked with,” says Qu in the company’s funding announcement.
HeyBoss is betting that people’s preference for human colleagues extends to human-esque avatars so that startups would hire it over a non-personified LLM like OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Qu is targeting less tech literate people than those who are vibe coding their way into big tech jobs; people who might want to use AI to start a yoga business or bakery, for example.
With relatively low interest rates and ubiquitous AI tools that theoretically decrease the capital and time required to start companies, the vibe business phenomenon has the potential to grow, inspiring more people to start their own companies.
HeyBoss is not Qu’s first business. I initially met her in 2021 when she made the Forbes 30 Under 30 list (which I used to edit) for her virtual events company Run The World. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Run The World exploded—hosting 10,000 events in its first month post-launch and growing from five to 45 employees during that time with $15 million in funding from backers like Andreessen Horowitz.
Things went south for Run the World when society reopened and people absconded from virtual events. As Run the World dissolved via asset fire sale, Qu and her cofounder Xuan Jiang engaged in a legal battle. First, Run the World, then-helmed by Qu, sued Jiang for computer fraud, breach of contract, and breach of fiduciary duty, per Axios. Then Jiang countersued Qu, RTW and a16z and others for discrimination. Ultimately, Qu, RTW and its investors effectively won the case.
This lived experience is maybe part of Qu’s decision to do things differently with HeyBoss. She’s hiring a human “vibe growth marketer” for HeyBoss. In a LinkedIn post about the job she says: “Fuck traditional job requirements: Majors, years of experience, degree, GPA, fancy schools etc. Don’t care. Your job: Make people talk about Heyboss all the time,” she writes. “Your only rule: 👉 Blow it up. But don’t get me arrested.”
See you Thursday,
Alexandra Sternlicht
X: @iamsternlicht
Email: alexandra.sternlicht@fortune.com
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Venture Deals
–XPANCEO, a Dubai-based computing company specializing in smart contact lenses, raised $250 million in Series A funding. Opportunity Venture (Asia) led the round.
–Huspy, a Dubai-based home buying platform, raised $59 million in Series B funding. Balderton Capital led the round, and was joined by ExBorder Partners, Turmeric Capital, BY Ventures, Dara Management, COTU Ventures, KE Partners, and returning investor Peax XV.
–Centivax, a San Francisco-based biotech company developing durable, universal vaccines, raised $45 million in Series A funding. Future Ventures led the round, and was joined by NFX, BOLD Capital, Base4, Kendall Capital Partners, Amplify Bio, and existing investors.
–Honor Education, a San Francisco-based learning platform and solutions provider, raised $38 million in Series A funding. Alpha Edison, Wasserstein & Co., Audeo Ventures, Interlock Partners, New Wave Capital, and other investors joined the round.
–Tulum Energy, a Milan-based energy startup specializing in clean hydrogen solutions, raised $27 million in seed funding. TDK Ventures led the round.
–Arago, a Paris and Silicon-Valley based photon-powered AI chip startup, raised $26 million in seed funding. Earlybird, Protagonist, and Visionaries Tomorrow led the round, and were joined by Generative IQ, C4 Ventures, and others.
–AirGarage, a San Francisco-based parking real estate company, raised $23 million in Series B funding. Headline led the round and was joined by existing investors Founders Fund and Fourthline Capital Management.
–Parspec, a San Mateo, Calif.-based AI-native wholesale distribution platform for construction products, raised $20 million in Series A funding. Threshold Ventures led the round and was joined by existing investors Innovation Endeavors, Building Ventures, Heartland Ventures, and Hometeam Ventures.
–Augmentus, a Singapore-based robotics company, raised $11 million in Series A+ funding. Woori Ventures led the round and was joined by EDBI, Sierra Ventures, and Cocoon Capital.
–Circle Games, an Istanbul, Turkey-based mobile game studio, raised $7.25 million in seed funding. BITKRAFT Ventures led the round and were joined by a16z Speedrun, Play Ventures, APY Ventures, and e2vc.
– Layer, a San Francisco-based embedded accounting platform for SMB software, raised $6.6 million in seed funding. Emergence Capital led the round, and was joined by Better Tomorrow Ventures.
–Novenda Technologies, a Netherlands-based 3D printing company specializing in dental applications, raised $6.1 million in Series A funding. Brightlands Venture Partners led the round, and was joined by KBC Focus Fund, Borski Fund, and Limburg Business Development Fund.
–Biorce, a Barcelona-based AI-powered healthtech company, raised €5 Million ($5.8 million) in funding. Norrsken VC led the round.
Private Equity
–Astria Elevate acquired Entro Communications, a Toronto-based experiential design firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
–Monroe Capital acquired a $100 million minority stake in NFS Capital, LLC, a Beverly, Mass.-based story lender and asset-backed loan provider.
–Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe acquired a majority stake in AIA Contract Documents, a Washington, D.C.-based risk management and workflow platform for the architecture, engineering, and construction industry. Financial terms were not disclosed.
–Oak Hill Capital acquired a majority stake in Socket Telecom, a Columbia, Mo.-based fiber internet service provider. Financial terms were not disclosed.
–Oak Hill Capital acquired a majority stake in IdeaTek, a Buhler, Kansas-based broadband service provider. Financial terms were not disclosed.
–Summit Partners acquired a minority stake in Quorso Global, a London-based intelligence management platform for retail leaders. Financial terms were not disclosed.
–GTCR acquired a majority stake in Clear Capital, a Reno-based real estate analytics, data solutions, and valuation technology company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
–Thompson Street Capital Partners acquired May Pest, LLC, a Waterloo, Ill.-based provider of pest control services to residential and commercial customers. Financial terms were not disclosed.
–Premier Radiology Services, a portfolio company of Grovecourt Capital Partners, acquired MetisMD, a Chicago-based teleradiology provider. Financial terms were not disclosed.
–Valor Exterior Partners, a portfolio company of Osceola Capital, acquired Kirkin Exteriors, a New Castle, Del.-based roofing, siding, and solar provider. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Exits
–Tilia Holdings acquired Caputo Cheese, a Melrose Park, Ill.-based supplier of Italian cheeses, from Promus Equity Partners. Financial terms were not disclosed.
–Hg agreed to acquire a majority stake in A-LIGN, a Tampa-based provider of technology-enabled cybersecurity compliance services, from Warburg Pincus. Financial terms were not disclosed.
–GHO Capital agreed to acquire a majority stake in FotoFinder Systems, a Bad Birnbach, Bavaria-based manufacturer of skin imaging solutions, from EMZ Partners. Financial terms were not disclosed.
–Strategic Value Partners agreed to acquire Red Oak Power, a Sayreville, New Jersey-based natural gas-fired combined-cycle generation facility, from Morgan Stanley. Financial terms were not disclosed.
OTHER
–Samsung agreed to acquire Xealth, a Seattle-based digital health platform. Financial terms were not disclosed.
–Pendo acquired Forwrd.ai, a Tel Aviv-based predictive analytics platform. Financial terms were not disclosed.
–Eudia acquired Johnson Hana, a Dublin-based alternative legal services provider. Financial terms were not disclosed.
FUNDS + FUNDS OF FUNDS
–OnePrime Capital, a Palo Alto-based investment firm, raised $305 million for its third fund focused on specialized technology secondary strategy.
–Boldstart Ventures, a Miami-based venture capital firm, raised $250 million for its seventh fund focused on AI-native infrastructure, secure identity and permissionless coordination, agents driving autonomous execution, and more.
PEOPLE
–Celesta Capital, a Silicon Valley-based deep tech venture capital firm, promoted Matthew Marsh to general partner and Robin Clewley to investor relations partner.
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