octonomy AI from Cologne Secures USD 20 Million Seed Round to Automate Complex Support Services
• The round was led by Macquarie Capital Venture Capital, with participation from Capnamic, NRW.Bank, and TechVision Fonds.
• Sushel Bijganath (CEO) and Oliver Trabert (CPTO) co-founded octonomy in 2024 alongside Thorsten Grote, Markus Hanslik, and Thomas Bollig.
• The octonomy platform enables rapid deployment of AI agents to assist customer service teams and automate complex workflows.
Cologne, November 3, 2025 – octonomy today announced the successful closing of a USD 20 million Seed round. The Cologne-based company provides an AI-powered digital workforce that automates support tasks performed by highly skilled professionals – ranging from technical support and product consulting to field service operations – targeting both mid-market and enterprise clients. This marks one of the largest Seed rounds in the past 24 months, positioning octonomy as one of Germany’s most promising business AI platforms only five months after its market launch. The round was led by Macquarie Capital Venture Capital, headed by Elmar Broscheit, with participation from Capnamic, NRW.Bank, and TechVision Fonds.
While conventional AI systems struggle with complex enterprise knowledge and often “hallucinate,” octonomy has developed a technology that can understand and apply highly specialized expert knowledge. This enables the company to automate not just simple, repetitive tasks but also advanced professional work.
With this Seed round – just six months after its USD 5 million pre-seed announcement – octonomy sends a clear signal of market traction. The company’s total funding now amounts to USD 25 million, only five months after market entry.
Behind octonomy stands an experienced founding team of technology and AI experts: CEO Sushel Bijganath and CPTO Oliver Trabert, together with co-founders Thorsten Grote, Markus Hanslik, and Thomas Bollig, have previously built several tech ventures. The 70-person team brings deep AI expertise from companies including Meta, Amazon, Aleph Alpha, and unicorns such as Personio, Staffbase, and SoSafe.
From Pilot Projects to Digital Workforce
The octonomy platform enables organizations to deploy AI agents quickly and flexibly to assist service teams and automate sub-processes. Going far beyond simple automation, the platform can handle complex technical inquiries – for example, from engineers or field technicians.
At the core of the platform lies proprietary technology capable of intelligently processing unstructured data and delivering highly precise responses. While standard models tend to lose context and achieve only around 50% accuracy in complex environments (according to customer feedback), octonomy reaches 95% accuracy, often surpassing human performance. The company’s proprietary system goes well beyond standard RAG solutions, enabling reliable automation of expert-level support tasks. Even organizations operating in complex environments that previously lacked dependable AI solutions benefit from measurable relief, higher customer satisfaction, and implementation in under 20 days.
Hosted in Germany and fully compliant with GDPR and the EU AI Act, octonomy offers maximum data security and transparency.
“Eighty percent of AI projects fail once things get complex. That’s exactly where we come in,” says Sushel Bijganath, founder and CEO of octonomy. “Our agents deliver verified 95%+ answer accuracy and truly relieve teams. With Macquarie by our side, we’ve gained an international partner to bring this capability to Europe and the U.S.”
Capital for Expansion and Product Leadership
Only five months after its founding, octonomy serves enterprise and mid-market clients across Europe and North America from offices in Cologne, Denver, and New York. The new funding will primarily be used to strengthen the company’s market leadership and expand sales and marketing structures in the DACH region and the U.S.
“octonomy has developed an AI solution that automates complex knowledge work at an expert level. This is not an incremental chatbot upgrade but a real AI revolution—especially in technical support,” said Elmar Broscheit, Global Co-Head of Macquarie Capital Venture Capital. “octonomy demonstrates how complex enterprise processes can be automated precisely, securely, and at scale through proprietary IP.”
“Germany still has enormous untapped potential when it comes to applying AI in enterprise settings,” added Jörg Binnenbrücker, Founding Partner of Capnamic. “octonomy is building an industrial-grade tool. They translate expert knowledge into scalable operational intelligence and make experience productive. This is exactly the kind of technology Germany needs to bring AI from research into real economic value creation.”
Additional comments on the funding
Dr. Ansgar Schleicher, Managing Partner of TechVision Fonds:
“Technical service faces a dual challenge: systems are becoming more complex, while skilled labor is increasingly scarce. Completing service calls successfully on the first visit is critical – it’s not just an efficiency factor but a real competitive edge. This is precisely where octonomy delivers game-changing solutions.”
Thorsten Reuter, Head of Digital Economy & Technology at NRW.Bank:
“With octonomy, one of Germany’s most promising enterprise AI companies is emerging in Cologne. The company is an impressive example of how North Rhine-Westphalia, as a strong industrial region, is shaping the future and taking a leading role in next-generation AI technologies.”
Press contacts:
TVF Management GmbH
Dr. Ansgar Schleicher, Managing Partner
Markt 45–47, D-52062 Aachen
Tel.: +49 241 47056-0
ansgar.schleicher@tvf.vc | www.tvf.vc
octonomy AI GmbH
Maren Kaspers
Im Mediapark 5 c/o STARTPLATZ, 50670 Cologne
Tel.: +49 1578 6785920
maren.kaspers@octonomy.ai | www.octonomy.ai
VOCATO public relations GmbH
Corinna Bause / Romy Schächtel
Toyota-Allee 29, D-50858 Cologne
Tel.: +49 2234 6019819 / -23
cbause@vocato.com | rschaechtel@vocato.com | www.vocato.com
About TVF
The TechVision Fonds (TVF) is the leading early-stage venture capital fund in Germany’s Rhineland region, focusing on technology startups from pre-seed to Series A. TVF invests in exceptional teams from the region, including neighboring Belgium and the Netherlands. With experience from four fund generations and over EUR 100 million in assets under management, TVF is supported by strong investors such as NRW.Bank, eight regional savings banks, and over 20 successful entrepreneurs.
TVF supports startup teams with proximity, network, and expertise—helping them become the next generation of international industry leaders. Through its close connection to the S-UBG Group, TVF provides unique access to more than 150 established companies across various industries, connecting startups with their first customers, partners, and advisors.
TVF – Brain | Cash | Proximity
Learn more at www.tvf.vc
About octonomy
octonomy revolutionizes support processes through AI agents—so-called “octo-workers”—capable of handling even complex tasks with human-level quality. With near-human accuracy, omnichannel integration (chat, mail, voice), and implementation in under 20 days, octonomy offers enterprises a digital workforce that reduces workload and enables growth—without additional headcount.
Founded in summer 2024 in Cologne by a seasoned team of entrepreneurs, octonomy now employs nearly 70 people worldwide.
