More than 100 million Americans work on the frontlines of the real economy, from independent contractors to small business owners who still rely on one tool above everything else: the phone. Yet, most AI products today are built for desk workers, leaving the real conversations that drive business, calls, texts, quick updates, largely untouched by technology. Beside AI is stepping directly into that gap.
The company is rebuilding the phone for the AI era by capturing every conversation and turning it into something a business can use. Every call and message becomes a source of insight that helps workers book jobs, follow up with customers, and grow revenue without changing how they work.
With more than 20,000 paying subscribers and half of them opening the app more than 14 times a day, Beside is already becoming a daily companion for frontline professionals.
The startup has now raised $32 million to accelerate this mission. The round was led by EQT Ventures, joined by Index Ventures and well-known angels including Stewart Butterfield of Slack, Clément Delangue of Hugging Face, and Jean-Charles Samuelian-Werve of Alan.
The new capital will fuel deeper R&D, strengthen Beside’s telephony infrastructure, and push it closer to carrier-level capabilities as it prepares for global expansion.
The company is the brainchild of Maxime Germain, who previously built the mental health startup Jour before selling it for $20 million. While experimenting with AI tools that supported therapy sessions, Germain saw firsthand how large language models could help capture meaning from conversation.
That experience sparked a broader idea: every professional depends on conversations, yet the knowledge inside those calls disappears the moment the phone hangs up.
Beside solves that by owning the phone layer rather than stacking AI on top of another service. This gives the platform direct, real-time access to audio, messages, and context.
The result is an AI partner that remembers details, automates follow-ups, drafts responses, and surfaces insights across calls, texts, meetings, and even email. And because it works on iOS, Android, macOS, and soon Windows, it fits naturally into everyday routines without forcing people to change tools.
Germain describes the experience as bringing consumer-grade simplicity to business communication. The goal is for the app to feel as smooth as the tools people already rely on while still being powerful enough to support an entire company’s communication layer.
Most users start as individuals handling their own calls and messages, and then the product spreads across their teams as they see how quickly it compounds value.
With rising traction across the U.S. and a vision that aims to reshape business communication at its core, Beside AI is entering a defining moment. Investors say what impressed them most was not just the technology but the ambition.
EQT Ventures partner Kaushik Subramanian noted that Beside is solving a real problem for millions of people who rely on their phone, not dashboards, to get work done. The product is simple, intuitive, and smart in a way that aligns with how everyday workers actually operate.
As adoption accelerates, Beside AI is positioning itself to transform the way frontline businesses connect, communicate, and grow in the AI-driven economy.
