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Customer service has long been the backbone of brand loyalty, but delivering helpful, consistent, on-brand interactions at scale has posed a challenge. We believe Sierra, co-founded by Bret Taylor and Clay Bavor, is redefining this space with conversational AI agents that elevate how companies connect with their customers. ICONIQ Growth is excited to partner with Sierra in its Series C funding round alongside Greenoaks and Thrive Capital, supporting their mission to bring every company its own customer-facing AI agent.
For decades, customer service has remained largely reactive, marked by long wait times, repetitive questions, and inconsistent responses that leave customers frustrated and businesses scrambling to keep up. We're all too familiar with robotic, inflexible chatbots on websites that frustratingly misunderstand the simplest requests like "Where is my order?" or "Can I start a refund?"
With Sierra's agents, companies can deliver an empathetic, conversational, and personalized experience—answering questions, resolving issues, surfacing relevant context from enterprise systems, and making informed decisions. As Sierra puts it, "If in 1995 you needed a website, in 2025 you'll need an AI agent." Similar to how a company's website is an important customer interaction medium, Sierra's conversational AI agents can serve as an extension of the brand. Sierra strives to customize each agent's personality to align with its customer's corporate identity, resulting in a bespoke support experience tailored for each client.
We believe their approach is already transforming these interactions. Sierra has partnered with Sonos, OluKai, SiriusXM, Chubbies, AG1, WeightWatchers, and many leading brands who value customer obsession and trust to deliver superior customer experiences. In speaking with Sierra’s customers, we hear consistent praise for the platform’s value, with companies reporting significant productivity gains, improved customer satisfaction scores, and considerable cost savings. And by combining both chat and voice capabilities to meet customers wherever they are, Sierra is shaping the customer experience of tomorrow, unlocking new ways for companies to reach and serve their customers.
Sierra's founders bring exceptional experience in AI and technology, and it's a team we know very well. A three-time founder who we have known for over a decade, Bret's experience spans roles as co-CEO of Salesforce, CTO of Facebook, and current Chairman of OpenAI. Despite his achievements, he remains humble and a relentless force in building transformative companies. Co-founder Clay Bavor is equally impressive and brings nearly two decades of experience at Google, where he led Google Labs, Google Lens, and the company's AR/VR initiatives, including Project Starline. We believe that together, Bret and Clay form a rare duo, combining technical prowess and market vision, perfectly positioned to reshape the future of AI-driven customer engagement.
At ICONIQ Growth, we see Sierra fundamentally shifting how customer service is delivered—not only solving the enduring pain points of customer service but also elevating the industry standard by allowing companies to deliver expert-level, empathetic customer experience at scale. We believe Sierra is building the future of customer experience, founded on values that we at ICONIQ Growth deeply respect—trust and customer obsession and we are thrilled to support Bret, Clay, and the exceptional Sierra team on this journey.
Thank you, Sierra—this is just the beginning of an exciting chapter.
Published:
October 30, 2024
