AI That Speaks Volumes: Why We’re Backing Bland

At Emergence Capital we believe in backing companies that don’t just embrace the future but actively create it. That’s why we’re excited to announce our investment in Bland, the hyper-realistic conversational AI platform that’s reshaping enterprise communication. 

We’re proud to lead Bland’s $40M Series B in support of their vision for how modern businesses should interact with their customers. This funding will help Bland’s founders dial up a world where phone communication is seamless, intuitive, and valuable – for both ends of the call.

Reinventing the Business Phone Call

The traditional enterprise phone system is long overdue for a revolution. Customers endure long hold times, employees repeat the same scripts endlessly, and businesses spend heavily on systems that fail to deliver great experiences. Bland is tackling this problem head-on with a bold approach: AI-powered phone agents that deliver natural, efficient, and scalable voice interactions.

Imagine calling a business at any hour and being greeted by an agent that feels human—empathetic, precise, and always ready with the right answer. That’s what Bland is already doing today. Bland doesn’t just replicate human interactions; it enhances them, offering businesses a way to create better customer experiences without the inefficiencies of traditional contact centers.

Why Bland Is Bold

Voice remains the most natural way for humans to connect, but it has historically been one of the hardest forms of communication to modernize. While many companies built automated text and chat solutions in recent years, Bland’s founders, Isaiah Granet and Sobhan Nejad, leaned into the challenge of creating AI voice agents that sound and feel authentic. They’ve succeeded by combining cutting-edge AI with thoughtful enterprise features that meet the complex needs of modern businesses.

Bland allows companies to build AI agents tailored to their unique goals, from replicating the tone of their brand to creating multi-language support for global audiences. At the core of the platform is Conversational Pathways, Bland’s no-code workflow builder. With Pathways, customers can design their own voice experiences, and make continual updates and improvements to their flows. Every call also generates detailed observability & analytics, helping businesses learn, adapt, and improve with each interaction. And with dozens of No Code integrations that seamlessly connect to existing enterprise systems, Bland can easily be adopted into the workflows of forward-thinking organizations with minimal fuss. 

A Platform Built for Impact

Bland’s AI platform is already driving value for a diverse range of industries. Organizations like Hertz, The University of Phoenix, the Cleveland Cavaliers, and Better.com are using Bland to answer and make millions of calls, extract actionable insights from customer interactions, and streamline internal operations. Their impact spans industries, including healthcare, real estate, logistics, and financial services, where businesses rely on secure, scalable, and compliant communication tools.

At its core, Bland’s platform is built with trust and safety as priorities. Fully self-hosted, it meets the strictest data privacy regulations like HIPAA and GDPR, giving enterprises confidence that their customer data is secure and protected.

The Bigger Vision

Bland is off to an amazing start, but their ambitions go far beyond automating phone calls. As Isaiah explains, “Humans can’t be trained to handle millions of calls at once, work 24/7, or adapt to a company’s precise preferences—but AI can. We’re building a future where businesses communicate with their customers more effectively, without sacrificing quality or empathy.”

Bland’s exciting roadmap is all about creating technology that empowers businesses and their employees while delivering better outcomes for customers. It’s not just about handling calls better—Bland is pioneering a fundamental shift in how businesses and customers connect and transact.

Why We’re Excited

As investors, we’re drawn to founders and companies that tackle the hardest problems with clarity, innovation, and a commitment to making a meaningful impact. Bland more than embodies these qualities. Since we’ve gotten to know Isaiah, Sobhan, and their team, we’ve seen them iterate at an unmatched velocity & high quality, with bold ambitions to redefine the future of enterprise communication. We’re honored to now be part of their journey.

Here’s to a future with no phone trees, hold music, or transfers to another department. A future where every phone call connects us better, and leaves us smiling, rather than fuming, when we say goodbye.

To see Bland’s AI platform in action or learn how they’re helping businesses worldwide, visit Bland.com.