Profound Raises $180M Series D at $1.8B Valuation for AI Search Optimization

Profound, a startup developing marketing software to help brands appear in AI search results, said on Sept. 15, 2026 that it raised $180 million in a Series D round at a $1.8 billion valuation. The funding came less than seven months after the company's $96 million Series C.

Sequoia and Kleiner Perkins led the round, with participation from existing investors including Lightspeed Venture Partners, Khosla Ventures and South Park Commons. Profound was founded in 2024 as an analytics platform and has since expanded to help companies research and create marketing strategies.

The company operates in the generative engine optimization (GEO) and answer engine optimization (AEO) space, which focuses on helping products surface in AI systems that consumers increasingly use for search. Profound says revenue has tripled over the past six months, and it now serves more than 1,000 enterprise customers, including Comcast, The Estée Lauder Companies and Walmart.