Exclusive: Gradient raises $4M for AI-native startup accounting firm

Gradient has raised $4 million in pre-seed funding to build what it calls an AI-native accounting firm for US startups. The company came out of stealth with backing from VentureFriends, Acadian Ventures, TinyVC, Heartfelt and Kima Ventures, and says the money will go into its operating model and customer growth.

Its pitch is unusual even by AI-startup standards. Gradient is not selling software for accountants to use. It is selling the outcome: fixed-fee accounting, tax and compliance work delivered by a firm where AI runs the internal machinery and licensed US CPAs stay on the front line with founders.

Rohan Krishan, one of the co-founders, says customers never talk to AI. They talk to real experts, while the algorithms work behind the scenes to speed things up. Gradient says it can close the books the same day, answer expert questions in under five minutes and turn around tax returns within two days. It also says it has already reconciled more than $40 million, and that companies backed by a16z, Y Combinator and Liquid 2 Ventures are using the service.

The team is small: seven people. Krishan founded the company in 2026 with Alexandre Sauvage, who was the first hire at Easop before Remote bought it, and Arthur Himmel, who worked with Krishan at Alan, is the CTO. The founders think the US accounting market can support a much larger company, even one aiming for $100 million in annual revenue within a few years.

They are betting against the model that failed before. Bench, which raised $113 million, shut down on December 27, 2024, after automation-first accounting companies fell short on customer expectations. Gradient says the answer is to keep AI invisible, let CPAs own accountability and build a service that works continuously instead of waiting for month-end panic.