AI in Startup GTM Strategy Report: Companion Blog Post
Discover different AI use cases, from chatbots to predictive analytics, designed to boost startup growth or efficiency in enterprise companies.
written by: Paige Bennett
AI in Startup GTM Strategy Report: Companion Blog Post
Discover different AI use cases, from chatbots to predictive analytics, designed to boost startup growth or efficiency in enterprise companies.
written by: Paige Bennett
AI in Startup GTM Strategy Report
This is a companion blog post to our AI in Startup GTM Strategy report series. Part 1 of the series covers key AI-related benchmarks among 500 startups. See how the funding stage impacts AI investment, team structure, and GTM performance. Data-driven insights for scaling smarter.
These days, if you’re not invested in AI as a business, you’re behind. That’s true not just for startups but for companies of all sizes, including enterprises.
According to our new AI in GTM Startup Strategy Report, 65% of startup founders have increased their investments in AI just in the past year. In a recent McKinsey survey, over 75% of respondents reported that their organizations were leveraging AI for at least one business function. And Adina Tecklu of Khosla Ventures shared at our AiSummit in July that they are less inclined to invest in a company that does not have AI tools in their tech stack.
So, what does that AI usage look like in the real world? Here are examples of AI use cases for startups, SMBs, SMEs, and enterprises, broken down by industry.
Businesses, ranging from startups to enterprises and from healthcare to energy, are utilizing AI in a wide variety of ways. Consider these real-world use cases of AI to find inspiration for how this technology could boost your startup.
The tech industry wouldn’t be, well, the tech industry, without utilizing the latest and greatest technology, and AI is no exception. Tech companies, from startups to enterprises, are using AI in various innovative ways to improve business operations, increase customer engagement and satisfaction, and make major impacts globally.
Clay, a data enrichment startup, has experienced growth 10 times over by incorporating OpenAI into its GTM services. The company developed the helpful Claygent, an agentic AI that helps customers research anything to speed up the GTM process and do more with less.
Utilizing AI for language is a use case with significant growth potential. Companies like DeepL (which recently reached a $2B valuation) and Google Translate can automatically translate languages, even from a live camera view. Similarly, companies like QuillBot and Grammarly have set out to enhance written communication through automated recommendations and improvements powered by AI.
AI is also improving upselling and customer engagement through personalization for companies of all sizes. Major companies like Amazon, Best Buy, and Walmart use algorithms to make customized recommendations for additional products, and AI can trigger automated, personalized emails to follow up with deals or product bundles to close deals and increase sales.
Further, AI is a driving force behind dynamic pricing, a method important for businesses such as hotels, event venues, and utility providers. Unicorn startups like Uber and Airbnb utilize AI-powered dynamic pricing to adjust rates based on real-time data.
AI has also revolutionized data management and security. At Charles Schwab, the company has incorporated machine learning for fraud detection. Its Schwab Knowledge Assistant assists clients with common questions, and the Schwab Research Assistant provides guidance on market analysis and makes financial planning recommendations.
Startups like 1Password are further improving cybersecurity and making data security more accessible to customers. The company has since evolved from password management to data security in the age of agentic AI. 1Password’s new Agentic AI Security tool enhances the security of AI agents as more companies adopt this technology.
These examples really only scratch the surface of how AI has transformed the tech industry. AI alone represents a significant advancement in this industry, which is only predicted to grow further, not just within tech, but across many industries. Here are other ways AI is transforming businesses across sectors and sizes.
Viz.AI is just one of many startups making strides in the healthcare space with AI. It provides multiple algorithms, already cleared by the FDA, to enhance patient care through faster diagnosis, improve communication among healthcare teams, and provide more accurate diagnoses. According to the company, the process from when the patient comes to the hospital to intervention or treatment is 42% faster with its AI solutions.
Flatiron, an AI-powered SaaS startup, connects cancer centers, oncologists, and researchers to accelerate drug research, enhance drug and research access, and improve clinical trials and patient care.
In a recent study from Johns Hopkins University and Stanford University, researchers trained a da Vinci Surgical System AI-powered robot for surgery. They found that the robot was able to successfully handle a needle, lift out body tissue, and suture the wounds just as well as human doctors.
Robotics can allow for even more precise, less invasive surgical procedures, and many companies are working on these innovations, including:
On the enterprise front, Pfizer has made revolutionary strides with AI, including using this technology to develop the PAXLOVID treatment for COVID-19. AI modelling enabled researchers to identify the most effective molecular changes and develop a method to administer the medication effectively as an oral pill, rather than requiring a hospital trip. According to Pfizer, AI allowed the team to develop the PAXLOVID medication in just four months.
Tech giant Microsoft is also pursuing AI in the medical sphere, with the recent development of the MAI Diagnostic Orchestrator. This AI tool was able to improve diagnostic accuracy, with the AI reaching 80% accuracy compared to 20% accuracy of human doctors. Further, it cut the cost of diagnosing by 20%, Wired reported.
AI and energy go hand in hand: while AI has received criticism for its high energy demand, this technology can also be leveraged to make the energy sector more efficient, reliable, and sustainable.
Octopus Energy, a unicorn startup valued at $10B, is using AI to manage energy grids that serve over 70M people globally. The company’s AI tool, called Kraken, utilizes machine learning to manage energy customers, provide better service and communication, reduce energy costs for consumers, and facilitate the integration of green energy installations into the energy grid.
Another innovative company in the space is neXtract energy, which utilizes AI to better track and manage electricity. Ultimately, the company is making it easier to use and store renewable energy, so that less energy goes to waste.
Both onshore and offshore wind are crucial in the clean energy transition, and SkySpecs is helping to maximize wind energy harvests. This company uses artificial intelligence to monitor wind turbines, catching any risks or problems early to minimize production and revenue losses. When something goes wrong, SkySpecs can connect wind farm operators to repair vendors quickly through its massive database of vetted professionals. In North America, 65% of all turbines are under monitoring by SkySpecs.
AI is making huge waves in agriculture as farmers grapple with adapting to the effects of climate change and maximizing yields to feed an ever-growing global population.
Taranis is an AgTech startup that uses AI technology to provide insights and recommendations for every crop and plant, down to each leaf. Taranis enables farmers to identify pest problems, diseases, nutrient deficiencies, and other crop risks early on, allowing growers to apply solutions and minimize crop losses.
Agricultural robots powered by AI are also gaining ground, as 70% of surveyed growers have invested in automation, according to AgFunder News. Companies such as Monarch, which has developed an autonomous tractor, and Carbon Robotics, which has created an AI-powered laser-weeding tool, are closing major deals, including a $133M Series C round for Monarch.
As an example of utilizing AI for agriculture at an enterprise level, Bayer Crop Science, a subsidiary of Bayer, is leveraging its own Climate FieldView technology to enhance crop yields with fewer resources and greater precision. Climate FieldView draws from a deep well of data, providing farmers with smart, automated recommendations for seeding and chemical application. It also keeps track of each farm’s data from season to season, informing future planting decisions. The AI-powered tool also helps farmers reduce their carbon emissions.
AI is becoming a staple in the financial sector, particularly in assessing and managing risk, enhancing security, and combating fraud.
Stripe is one of the biggest names in both finance and the startup realm. According to the Hypergrowth Startup Index, Stripe is among the top three unicorn startups for 2025, with a post-valuation of $70B. The startup incorporates AI features throughout its entire system, including fraud prevention, pattern recognition, payment personalization, revenue recovery, and a first-of-its-kind Payments Foundation Model that processed $1.4T in payments in 2024 alone using this technology.
Checkout.com is yet another top unicorn of the year, with a $40B post-valuation. The startup’s Intelligent Acceptance optimizes and automates payments for increased revenue, seamless integrations, automatic compliance with changing regulations, and smart monitoring to reduce fraud risks.
Yet another top unicorn of 2025, Chime, has been utilizing AI for years to gain new customers and improve the customer experience. Back in 2018, Chime used AI-powered predictive personalization to increase new account registrations by 8% in six weeks, then by another 79% over a following four-week period, The Financial Brand reported. Today, the company utilizes AI in multiple ways, including for generating helpful banking and financial content for users, detecting fraud, automating workflows, and improving customer service.
But AI isn’t just reserved for startups. This technology is also utilized daily by established financial enterprises. Bank of America utilizes an AI agent, Erica, for its customers, and it has over 20M regular users. The company also uses AI in The Academy, a coaching and training platform for employees. Bank of America’s AI coding tool has increased efficiency for its software development team by more than 20%.
JPMorgan Chase similarly utilizes AI in various ways, including for client advisory, fraud prevention, coding, and wealth management. As AI Expert Network reported, JP Morgan Chase’s use of AI helped increase gross sales in asset and wealth management by 20% from 2023 to 2024, increased developer efficiency by up to 20%, and saved the company $1.5B in fraud prevention and efficiency.
These days, nearly every bank, trading platform, and other financial institution is incorporating AI at some level, whether behind the scenes or in a consumer-facing capacity. These are just a few examples from the financial sector, ranging from startups to enterprises.
Fast-moving consumer goods, also known as convenience goods, are quick-selling, lower-cost items that include food, beverages, and toiletries.
One startup making a name for itself in this sector with AI is PopCom, a vending and kiosk company that incorporates robotics and computer vision to quickly sell to customers while allowing retailers to sell with minimal overhead costs. The AI technology can collect buyer demographics to deliver personalized ads and recommendations while also collecting and analyzing market data and trends.
DoorDash recently announced a major move into AI that could help participating restaurants improve online menus with AI-generated item descriptions and enhanced images. According to the company, this could help businesses sell more, as 38% of customers rely on images to determine a restaurant, and restaurants with menu photos have seen a 44% increase in monthly sales.
Restaurants are also utilizing AI to take orders and improve menu accessibility. For instance, McDonald’s and IBM are collaborating to expand AI in restaurants, and the fast food giant has partnered with Google Cloud for edge computing. These advancements predict issues (including infamous broken ice cream machines) and use computer vision to detect order accuracy.
“If we can proactively address those issues before they occur, that’s going to mean smoother operations in the future,” Brian Rice, Executive Vice President and Global Chief Information Officer at McDonald's, told The Wall Street Journal.
AI is critical in HR, where automation enables HR professionals to juggle the many tasks at hand. From hiring and training new talent to managing payroll and benefits for employees, it’s a case of so much to do, so little time — until now. Many HR teams are experiencing significant benefits, including saving time and boosting productivity.
According to the latest HubSpot report on AI for GTM, the workforce management startup Rippling was able to double its year-over-year cold email performance, thanks to AI-powered data enrichment provided by Clay. Rippling has also benefited its clients with AI, automating administrative tasks like payroll and IT.
“The built-in AI feature is my smart personal assistant that helps me do my job,” said Tatyana Veremyova, Director of Employment Compliance at Y Combinator. “There’s also behind-the-scenes support Rippling provides that’s far superior to anything I’ve experienced before. I found myself saving 30-50% of my time spent on administrative tasks.”
Employee turnover is costly for any size company, but startups especially feel the impacts of turnover. As Built In reported, losing one employee could cost a company up to two times that employee’s salary. As a result, many startups are focusing on improving retention rates through the use of AI.
For instance, HR Signal uses real-time predictive AI to analyze employee turnover risks and market data, helping companies minimize turnover risk and improve employee satisfaction. Similarly, Peoplebox AI is a startup that helps with hiring new talent, engaging current employees, and conducting performance reviews to help employees achieve personal and organizational goals.
Many enterprise companies are utilizing AI in HR as well. Companies like Unilever and Hilton incorporate AI into their hiring processes, while PepsiCo has tapped AI to improve the hiring experience for potential candidates with helpful AI chatbots and automated, real-time application updates.
Startups that incorporate AI are standing out from competitors in every field, including the cosmetics sector.
Take Prose, for instance. The company utilized AI early in its journey to grow its line of personalized haircare products. The company collects dozens of data points for each customer through an automated consultation, which can then lead to billions of different formula options based on responses. The result is customized hair products, and in 2023, the company expanded to offer personalized skincare as well.
AI is also the name of the game at Proven Skincare, a personalized skincare company. The company combines AI technology and clinical expertise to deliver clinically proven skincare personalized for each customer. The company offers several quizzes for customers, which serve as engaging consultations that collect and transform data into personalized skincare recommendations. The AI can consider multiple factors, like environmental concerns and lifestyle habits, when developing products.
On the enterprise front, Estée Lauder Companies is fully embracing AI in cosmetics with a partnership with Microsoft. The companies are collaborating to develop an AI Innovation Lab to handle various activities, including creating an AI chatbot that employees can use to research and collect data for campaigns, as well as incorporating AI for research and development. The company also utilizes an AI-powered Makeup Assistant that assists individuals who are blind or visually impaired in applying makeup in a more accessible way.
L'Oréal is another cosmetics enterprise advancing its use of AI. The company acquired ModiFace, which it has tapped to develop Skin Aging Atlases for predicting skin aging. Medical providers can then use that information in clinical assessments. L'Oréal has also partnered with NVIDIA to improve customer engagement, such as through agentic AI. The company’s Beauty Genius is another AI-focused way of engaging with customers by providing automatic, expert, personalized advice on personal care.
The use of artificial intelligence in the automotive and transportation industries has been making headlines for years, with autonomous, self-driving cars, virtual vehicle assistants, and smart fleet management services gaining traction in this sector.
Waymo is a notable startup success story at the intersection of AI and transportation. According to HubSpot for Startups’ Hypergrowth Startup Index, Waymo is one of the top unicorn companies, with a $45B valuation. The company operates fleets of self-driving ride-share vehicles, which use AI to safely transport passengers across major cities, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Austin, Phoenix, and Atlanta.
Another example of an innovative startup in the space is Sonatus, which enables software in vehicles and uses AI to collect lifetime vehicle data. From there, manufacturers can use the data to inform design and safety innovations. Sonatus also features AI Automator technology, which allows manufacturers to deploy new automation features, even after vehicles have already been produced.
The use of AI in the automotive and transportation sector goes beyond startups, though. Major vehicle brands and even the aviation industry are incorporating AI. For instance, GE Aerospace incorporates AI into its safety and maintenance workflows, with this technology used for inspecting jet engine turbine blades and providing 24/7 engine monitoring. According to GE Aerospace, AI-powered monitoring has “enabled a 60-percent earlier lead time in identifying preventative maintenance recommendations,” and led to a 45% increase in detection rates.
GM is incorporating AI both behind the scenes and in consumer-facing features. For example, GM is utilizing AI to detect trends and find optimal locations for installing electric vehicle (EV) charging stations and has developed an AI algorithm to recommend efficient routes to drivers.
Popular features in many modern cars include lane-assist, automatic braking, and adaptive cruise control, all of which rely on AI and are expected to become safer as AI improves over time. For instance, Toyota and Nippon Telegraph and Telephone have partnered and recently invested over $3B to develop AI-powered infrastructure and a software platform designed to improve safety and reduce traffic accidents.
According to a Partnership for Analytics Research in Traffic Safety report, vehicles with at least one advanced driver assistance system feature, like automatic emergency braking, have experienced a 49% decline in front-to-rear crashes since 2022. As such, demand for safer, smarter vehicles is expected to increase in the future as AI technology continues to improve.
AI isn’t some far-off technology; businesses, from early-stage startups to long-standing enterprises, are already incorporating AI at every level in order to stay competitive.
These use cases are just a sample of the various ways companies — from startup to enterprise — can utilize artificial intelligence to meet their business goals, whether that’s to improve the customer experience, scale, or prepare a GTM strategy.
Looking for more ways to incorporate AI for your startup? Check out the latest AI in Startup GTM Strategy Report
