Adept raises $350M in fresh funding for its AI assistant that automates software tasks

Adept, an AI tech startup co-founded by a former OpenAI engineer, has raised $350 million in Series B funding led by General Catalyst and Spark Capital, with participation from existing investors, new financial partners, and some of the most “iconic companies” in technology.

Adept is the latest in a series of AI startups to tap the chatbot frenzy sparked by the success of OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Forbes had previously disclosed that the funding round would result in a post-money valuation of “at least $1 billion” for the company.

The latest round follows the $65 million round the startup raised in April 2022. The San Francisco-based startup plans to use the new cash infusion to launch its initial products, train models, and onboard more talent. The fresh funds will support the company’s product development, model training, and headcount growth.

What sets Adept apart from ChatGPT and other AI tools is that the 4-year-old startup is building AI tools that can actually execute commands based on human prompts instead of giving written responses.

Founded in 2018 by David Luan (CEO), Adept specializes in natural language processing (NLP) technology and provides AI-powered solutions for businesses. They focus on developing intelligent software tools that help organizations automate various tasks and improve their operational efficiency.

One of its AI’s flagship products is its chatbot platform, which enables businesses to create virtual assistants that can interact with customers in a natural and conversational way. These chatbots can be used for customer support, sales, and marketing, among other things.

Adept has also developed an advanced software tool called ACT-1, which has the ability to execute intricate user requests across multiple software applications. It can even coordinate actions between different applications, if necessary. Adept recently showcased how it integrated ACT-1 into a Chrome extension to monitor browser activity and execute commands like clicking, typing, and scrolling.

ACT-1 functions as an overlay window that sits above existing software, making it possible to perform a wide range of tasks such as importing LinkedIn URLs into recruiting software, conducting online research, and setting up spreadsheets, among other things. Users can simply enter a command into the overlay window’s text box, and ACT-1 will carry out the request.