Key Takeaways
- Proxy Foods AI raised a $6 million seed round led by Ted Leonsis, with participation from Robert G. Hisaoka and SWaN & Legend Venture Partners.
- The Washington, DC company will use the funds to expand operations and its product development efforts.
- Its platform uses agentic AI for food and beverage product development and formulation across CPG, foodservice and ingredient companies.
- Named customers include Barilla and Gefsinus, and the company says its average platform customer exceeds $1 billion in annual revenue.
- A partnership with Aperio Global adds a Zero Trust, quantum-resilient security layer that allows computation on encrypted formulations.
Proxy Foods AI Closes $6 Million Seed Round
Proxy Foods AI, a Washington, DC-based provider of a food and beverage research and development platform, has raised $6 million in seed funding. The round was led by Ted Leonsis, founder and chief executive of Monumental Sports & Entertainment, with participation from Robert G. Hisaoka and SWaN & Legend Venture Partners. The company said it will use the capital to expand operations and its product development efforts.
An AI Platform for Food and Beverage R&D
Led by Chief Executive Officer Panos Kostopoulos, Proxy Foods AI provides an agentic AI platform for food and beverage product development and formulation, helping consumer packaged goods, foodservice and ingredient companies move from concept to commercialization. The company reports adoption among large manufacturers, ingredient firms and restaurant brands, including Barilla and Gefsinus, and says its average platform customer exceeds $1 billion in annual revenue.
Enterprise Customers and Encrypted Formulations
The platform’s architecture is built for the security demands of global research and development organizations. A recently announced partnership with Aperio Global adds a Zero Trust, quantum-resilient security layer that enables computation on encrypted data without exposing proprietary formulations. Proxy Foods AI maintains labs and offices in San Francisco and Greece, and says the round will strengthen capabilities across food science, regulatory and commercialization work.
Where Proxy Foods AI Goes Next
The company said the new funding will also support expansion of its enterprise customer base globally. Proxy Foods AI positions the platform as a way for established food and beverage companies to shorten development cycles and defend market share as AI-driven research and development tools gain traction across the industry.
