$28M to Bring Search into the AI Age

Pinecone, a company that simplifies the development of vector search applications for developers, has raised $28 million in Series A funding led by Menlo Ventures, with participation from Tiger Global and Wing Venture Capital. Founded to address the evolving needs of search technology, Pinecone aims to make vector search—a method utilizing AI and machine learning to interpret data meanings rather than just keywords—accessible to engineers by offering it as a managed service with a simple API. Since its launch in 2021, Pinecone has introduced features like real-time index updates and a new REST API, while expanding its user base to include startups and Fortune 500 companies. The company plans to further invest in product development, machine learning research, and developer advocacy to enhance the speed and relevance of vector search results. Their efforts have resulted in practical applications across various industries, such as semantic search, alert management, and feed ranking in social apps.