Seattle Search Engine Startup Kaito Raises $5.3M – GeekWire

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Modify the user interface. (Picture Kaito)

Kaito, an AI-powered search engine that scours the internet for crypto-related topics, raised $5.3 million in a round led by Dragonfly.

The Seattle startup was founded in 2022 by Yu Hu, a former international equity trader at Citadel and an investment banking analyst at Deutsche Bank.

Kaito solves a problem in today’s crypto space where information is scattered across the web in places like Twitter spaces, Reddit forums, Discord, Medium, and podcast transcripts, among others.

The idea is to create an AI-powered search engine that aggregates information available online around a certain crypto-related topic, similar to Google.

The decentralized nature of the crypto industry has resulted in significant information overload and fragmentation across many channels, making it difficult for users to access and understand, the company said in a statement.

TechCrunch first reported the funding.

The new tool comes at a time when crypto news is coming from a mix of influencers and legacy media.

In the fallout from the FTX digital asset exchange, finance-focused influencers outperformed traditional media by getting information to the public faster, The Washington Post reported. YouTubers like Coffeezilla even interviewed FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried.

A user can search for information regarding the Solana blockchain, for example, and then receive a list of links to sources that may be useful in researching a certain trending topic.

The Kaitos search engine was in private alpha mode for investors but is now available to the public. A commercial version of the product is free, while an edition for institutional investors will be paid.

The startup is also working on integrating OpenAIs GPT-3 technology into its platform to introduce a chatbot version of its search capabilities, similar to Microsoft Bing.

Kaito will use the new money to grow the team and accelerate product development, TechCrunch reported. The startup currently has 19 employees, according to LinkedIn.

Other participants in the round included Sequoia Capital China, Jane Street, Mirana Ventures, Folius Ventures, Alpha Lab Capital and Taurus Ventures.

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