Konvo AI Secures €3.5 Million to Revolutionize E-commerce Service

Berlin-based startup Konvo AI has successfully raised €3.5 million in seed funding to enhance the customer service experience in the e-commerce sector. The funding round was led by Samaipata and included contributions from several investors, such as Abac Nest, JME, Itnig, Combination.vc, as well as prominent new backers like Xavier Pladellorens, founder of Deporvillage, and early Ankorstore executive Tomás Pueyo. With this latest investment, Konvo AI has raised a total of €4.3 million to date.

The company distinguishes itself by developing AI agents that do not merely follow rigid scripts, as traditional chatbots do. Instead, Konvo’s technology enables proactive engagement with customers, allowing these AI agents to autonomously manage complex queries, close sales, and resolve issues effectively. For instance, rather than simply processing cancellation requests, Konvo’s AI can identify if a customer has ordered the wrong size and suggest alternatives, thereby saving the sale.

Guillem Oliva, co-founder of Konvo AI, explained the company’s innovative approach: “Most AI agents follow rigid scripts – if a customer says, ‘cancel my order,’ they cancel it accordingly. Our agents think like human associates and solve the real problem.” He emphasized that Konvo’s agents are trained to adapt to various scenarios while adhering to the company’s guidelines, resulting in a more personalized customer service experience.

From Sports to E-commerce Innovation

Oliva co-founded Konvo alongside Scott Kapelewski, a partnership forged during their time at the WhatsApp marketing startup Charles in Berlin. Oliva’s background includes a tenure as a consultant at McKinsey, where he worked with major e-commerce brands. Kapelewski brings over a decade of tech expertise, including developing and selling his own e-commerce solutions during the release of limited sneaker editions.

Both co-founders share a competitive spirit rooted in their experiences as high-performance athletes, which has fueled their ambition to create a robust solution for the e-commerce industry. Oliva noted, “The combination of my market background and Scott’s technical expertise made perfect sense for tackling this problem.”

The mission behind Konvo AI is deeply personal for Oliva. He recalled witnessing his mother deliver exceptional customer service at her retail store, which shaped his understanding of the importance of customer care. “The rise of AI created a unique chance to change that — to make it easy for all e-commerce brands to delight customers with every interaction. That was the start of Konvo AI,” he stated.

Transforming Challenges into Opportunities

The e-commerce customer service market is valued at approximately €12.5 billion and is growing at an annual rate of 10%. Despite this growth, businesses face challenges such as escalating customer acquisition costs, employee turnover rates of around 40%, and rising customer expectations for personalized service. According to Oliva, these factors have led customer service to be viewed as a cost center rather than a competitive advantage.

He elaborated on the significant cost implications: “Customer acquisition costs have increased fivefold, costing €10,000 per replacement for support team members. Meanwhile, 74% of customers expect personalization that brands often fail to deliver.” Konvo AI aims to address these issues by turning customer service into a revenue-generating function through its proactive AI agents.

In terms of competition, Oliva recognizes two primary groups: established players like Zendesk and Gorgias, alongside newer AI-first platforms. He asserts that no one else is creating truly proactive agents capable of taking real-world actions. “For us, the main race is execution speed, to position Konvo as the category leader,” he added.

The startup currently employs a team of 13 professionals from 10 different nationalities, with women representing 25% of the workforce. With bases in both Berlin and Barcelona, Konvo AI plans to scale its operations rapidly in both cities.

Looking ahead, Oliva stated the company’s immediate goal is to become the leading AI agent platform for e-commerce in Europe. He emphasized the ambition to expand beyond customer service to enhance the entire customer experience journey, focusing on proactive sales and customer retention. “In the longer term, our ambition is global expansion. Every e-commerce brand should have agents that work like their best store associate — proactive, smart, and revenue-driving,” he concluded.