Bret Taylor’s AI Venture Sierra Secures $350 Million Funding

Staff Reporter | PNN

Sierra, the company founded by Bret Taylor and Clay Bever, has added a new dimension to the global wave of investments in artificial intelligence (AI)-based technology. On Thursday, the company announced that it had raised $350 million in a new funding round. The round was led by Green Oaks Capital, bringing Sierra’s valuation to nearly $10 billion.

Sierra began operations in early 2024 and, in just 18 months, has onboarded over 100 companies as clients, including prominent names such as Shopify, Ramp, and Brex. With this latest round, the company’s total funding has reached $635 million.

Earlier, Sierra raised $110 million in February 2024 led by Sequoia and Benchmark, and $157 million in October 2024 led by Green Oaks. Other investors include Iconiq and Thrive Capital.

The founders’ professional experience is particularly notable. Bret Taylor is a former co-CEO of Salesforce and the founder of Quip, a software company acquired by Salesforce in 2016 for $750 million. Clay Bever, on the other hand, is a former senior executive at Google who led the development of multiple popular products including Gmail and Google Drive.

Recently, Sierra launched the second year of its APX program, a specialized rotational program for new computer science graduates, modeled after Google’s renowned internship program. Through this initiative, graduates gain direct experience in developing and launching multiple products.

Despite the current downturn in the tech sector and employment challenges, Sierra’s hiring initiative is being viewed positively. Experts suggest that with the rapid growth of AI agents in customer service, Sierra is poised to strengthen its position in the global technology market in the coming years.