London Startup Raises $2.8M to Solve AI's Biggest Blind Spot

Jan de Vries · 2026-10-30

What if the key to successful AI adoption isn't in the boardroom, but in the break room? That's the bet behind Ares Intelligence, a London-based startup that just raised €2.6 million (about $2.8 million) to turn employee insights into actionable AI roadmaps. The round was led by Creandum and Lakestar, with participation from angels connected to Google DeepMind. It's a strong signal that investors see value in Ares' approach: using AI to interview employees and uncover where automation can truly make a difference. ### The Problem: AI Adoption Without a Map Ares was founded in 2026 by Matt Falconer and 21-year-old Alfie Ranstead, who previously ran Instruct, an automation company. They kept hearing the same thing from customers: they wanted to automate parts of their business but had no idea where to start. "Businesses across Europe know they need to adopt AI, but many still don't know where to start," Falconer said. "It's vital that companies begin their AI transformations now to avoid falling behind." That's where Ares comes in. Its platform deploys an AI interviewer that holds confidential, voice-based conversations with every employee—in more than 70 languages. Within weeks, leadership gets a prioritized, evidence-led roadmap identifying where AI can save time and money. ### How It Works: From Conversations to Roadmaps The process is surprisingly simple. First, employees are trained on what AI can do. Then, the AI interviewer talks to each person, capturing their knowledge about manual workarounds, broken handoffs, and unapproved AI tools. Finally, Ares analyzes the insights and drafts recommendations. The entire process takes weeks, not the months typically required by consulting firms. And it flips the traditional top-down approach on its head. Instead of relying on a handful of senior managers, Ares taps into the people closest to the day-to-day work. "The people doing the work every day have a huge amount of knowledge about where AI could make a difference, but they're rarely asked," Falconer added. "Ares gives them a voice across departments, countries and languages, and turns what they share into a practical plan." ### Privacy and Compliance Built In Ares takes data privacy seriously. The platform is GDPR- and SOC 2-compliant, with anonymization controls that let businesses mask names, redact voices, or strip role metadata before reports reach leadership. Customers can deploy it on their own cloud or use Ares' infrastructure in the EU or the US, with data retention windows set by the business. > "The gap between AI ambition and real-world evidence is the right challenge to back. I'm building a business with AI myself, and there's a significant difference between an impressive demo and something you can rely on in your actual work. What appeals to me about Ares Intelligence is getting the insight from the people closest to the work." — Enrico Mellis, Venture Partner at Lakestar ### Early Traction and What's Next Since launch, Ares has signed enterprise customers across Europe and the United States in about seven months. One customer, Tremonia—a Mercedes-Benz spin-out—uncovered more than 400 hours of avoidable manual work per month within four weeks of using Ares' AI interviewer. That's like finding an extra 10 workweeks of productivity every month. With the fresh capital, Ares plans to expand operations and bring its AI-driven workforce intelligence to more businesses. "Enterprise AI today is mostly coding, and that's only the start," said Richard Keuntje, Vice President at Creandum. "The opportunity across the rest of the business is far bigger and still largely untapped, and we're at the very beginning of enterprise adoption." For companies wondering where to start with AI, Ares offers a compelling answer: ask your employees. They already know.