We’ve raised a $30M seed round led by @Sequoia, with participation from @Jump_, @Lux_Capital, @AntiFund, @SeliniCapital, @PeakXVPartners, SF1, and others. https://t.co/N62p5e5tbl
— Catalyst (@CatalystLabsX) October 8, 2026
Catalyst raised a $30 million seed round led by Sequoia Capital to expand its AI-powered investing platform, which is designed to help users turn investment ideas into executable strategies. The company was founded by Dylan Iskandar and Justin Zheng.
Catalyst allows users to describe an investment thesis in plain language and then uses AI agents to gather and analyze market signals, identify potential execution paths across platforms and venues, and help users backtest and deploy strategies.
The platform is designed to make sophisticated investing workflows more accessible without requiring users to manually navigate the underlying market infrastructure.
Catalyst also incorporates limits and safety controls intended to give users greater visibility into how strategies are constructed and executed.
The company is focused on addressing the gap between having an investment idea and understanding how to translate that idea into an actual trade.
While retail investors now have easier access to markets through web and mobile trading platforms, Catalyst is aiming to simplify the analytical and execution work that can still make more advanced strategies difficult to implement.
The platform combines AI agents with trading systems and financial infrastructure to help users evaluate opportunities, understand available options, and determine how a strategy could be executed.
Catalyst’s approach begins with user intent rather than requiring investors to first understand the technical mechanics of different markets, platforms, and venues.
The company is also building feedback and testing capabilities that allow users to evaluate strategies before deploying them.
Iskandar previously conducted cybersecurity research for the U.S. Department of Defense while in high school and later attended Stanford as a Jane Street scholar before leaving to build Catalyst.
Zheng previously raised a seed round at age 16, received a Pioneer grant for work involving biometrics and cryptocurrency, and was twice selected as the youngest IDEO CoLab fellow.
The broader Catalyst team includes people with experience at Palantir, Scale AI, Citadel, Citadel Securities, Hudson River Trading, and Jump Trading.
Catalyst is positioning itself around the idea that increasingly capable AI agents can help with complex financial research, analysis, and execution tasks that historically required significant specialized expertise.
The company’s longer-term ambition is to become a universal orchestration layer that helps users turn financial ideas into real-world investment actions.
Sequoia Capital is backing that vision as Catalyst continues developing its product and expanding the capabilities of its AI-driven investing platform.
KEY QUOTES:
“Describe your thesis in plain language, and Catalyst agents gather and analyze market signals, identify the best path across platforms and venues, and help you backtest and deploy strategies with clear limits and safety controls. You can begin with intent, rather than the plumbing of the market.”
“It is our privilege to be their early partner and lead Catalyst’s seed round, and we know this is only the beginning. Already, users are calling the platform ‘unparalleled’ and ‘a perfect experience.’ As the finance world catches up, their ambition is nothing short of building the universal orchestration layer for turning financial ideas into reality.”
George Robson, Sequoia Capital
