a16z leads Meridian's $17 million seed round, AI automation Excel modeling sparks Wall Street efficiency revolution

Meridian, an AI workspace startup based in New York, announced the completion of a $17 million seed funding round led jointly by Andreessen Horowitz and The General Partnership, with participation from QED Investors, FPV Ventures, and other institutions. The company focuses on “AI automation for Excel modeling,” aiming to transform the manual spreadsheet workflows heavily relied upon by financial institutions into traceable, automatically updatable intelligent systems.

Meridian’s core product is an integrated AI workspace that can automatically handle data refreshes, model building, and version management, with each step traceable back to the original data source, addressing pain points in traditional Excel related to auditing, collaboration, and compliance. The platform is compatible with both Excel and Google Sheets and retains native shortcuts, allowing users to operate in a familiar environment with higher efficiency.

Currently, Meridian has partnered with startups like Decagon and several financial institutions, covering high-intensity modeling scenarios in investment banking, private equity, and real estate. The company states that its system can reduce the time required for manual Excel modeling from hours or even days by up to 90%, significantly lowering human error and communication costs.

Within just a few months of product launch, Meridian has signed nearly $5 million in commercial contracts, demonstrating strong demand for AI-driven financial modeling and automated data workflows. The management team comes from renowned financial firms such as KKR, Lazard, and Evercore, with deep understanding of Wall Street’s workflows and pain points.

Against the backdrop of generative AI rapidly penetrating enterprise software, Meridian is at the intersection of “AI office automation” and “financial intelligent workspace.” The recent lead investment from a16z signifies top-tier venture capital recognition of its technological approach and market potential. As banks and asset management firms accelerate digital transformation, AI-powered Excel automation platforms may become a key component of the next-generation financial infrastructure. (techinasia)