Artis announced a $7.3 million seed funding round led by LiveOak Ventures, with participation from mark vc and Capital Factory. The Austin-based company also secured up to $3 million in revolving credit from Banc of California, bringing its total potential capital to $10.3 million.
Founded in 2022, Artis provides brand services for residential architects, interior designers, and custom home builders. The company currently serves more than 60 firms, including McALPINE, Kligerman AD, Schafer & Company, Cravotta Interiors, and Foursquare Builders.
The new funding will support continued investment in Artis’s technology platform as it expands beyond social media into websites, generative engine optimization (GEO), and other channels where clients’ brands are discovered. The capital will also be used to grow the company’s executive, client experience, sales, and software engineering teams. The announcement coincides with the unveiling of Artis’s new brand identity.
Artis builds intelligence around each customer, including its voice, standards, and design decisions, and uses that information across websites, social content, and AI search presence. The company said this intelligence compounds over time as partnerships deepen.
The company was co-founded by CEO Zach Rubin, Head of Product and Operations Sahar Afrakhan, and Head of Strategy David Rubin. Artis also announced two senior leadership additions. Melissa Fodo, formerly of McGarrah Jessee, joins as Head of Brand & Marketing, while David Moon, who previously held leadership roles at Bazaarvoice, Accruent, Clover Sport, and McKinsey & Company, joins as Head of Client Partnerships.
Artis plans to launch website and AI-search discoverability capabilities in the coming months as it broadens its platform beyond social media.
LiveOak Ventures, which led the round, has more than $500 million under management and has led investments in 60 Texas-based technology companies.
KEY QUOTES:
“The architects, designers, and builders I sit with feel personally accountable to spaces they’ll never live in, for moments they’ll never witness. They refuse to stop at good enough. But they tell me only twenty percent of their day actually goes to the craft itself. The rest gets eaten by the marketing, the procurement, the coordination, and everything else it takes to run a practice. We take that on, so they can return to the craft. The version of AI worth caring about here isn’t the kind that replaces the judgment. It’s the kind that serves it.”
Zach Rubin, Co-Founder and CEO, Artis
“What we’re building is a team of brand partners armed with connected intelligence about each practice they serve: its voice, its standards, the decisions and craft behind every project. AI enables a level of depth that simply was not possible before. Today, that depth shapes their content, their website, and how they show up in AI search. Tomorrow, the way they run their practice.”
Sahar Afrakhan, Co-Founder and Head of Product & Operations, Artis
“Artis has a keen ear for what makes the voice of each brand they work with unique, and the talent to tell those stories with authenticity and panache. They make an outstanding partner for any company finessing the delicate art of reaching their target audiences and enhancing engagement.”
Gil Schafer III, Founding Partner, Schafer & Company
“Architects, designers, and builders are among the most talented creative professionals in the world, yet only a fraction of their time actually goes to practicing their craft. Artis takes on everything else, with AI that learns the voice, standards, and sensibility of each practice, delivers insights and solutions that compound with every engagement. We’re proud to back Zach and Sahar, and David again, as they look to build a category-defining company in this space.”
Krishna Srinivasan, Founding Partner, LiveOak Ventures
