Nexos.ai: From AI Pilot to Production | Nord Security Founders

Nexos.ai Launches to Streamline Enterprise AI Deployment

A recently established AI orchestration startup, founded by the creators of Lithuanian unicorn Nord Security, is dedicated to assisting enterprises in deploying their AI initiatives. The initial emphasis will be on enhancing the visibility, security, and adaptability of large language models (LLMs).

Founders and Background

Nexos.ai, the name of this new venture, is the creation of Tomas Okmanas and Eimantas Sabaliauskas. They previously established Nord Security, a highly recognized brand throughout Lithuania and Europe.

Nord Security, primarily known for its NordVPN product, achieved success through bootstrapping for a decade. This was followed by a significant $100 million investment in 2022, resulting in a $1.6 billion valuation. A subsequent fundraising round later increased the valuation to $3 billion.

Seed Funding and Investors

The company is officially emerging from stealth mode today, announcing $8 million in seed funding. This investment comes from a diverse group of prominent backers.

Index Ventures is leading the round, marking their inaugural investment in Lithuania. Hannah Seal, a partner at Index Ventures, expressed strong interest in supporting the venture from its early stages.

“Having followed Tomas and his work for a considerable time, we were keen to invest when we learned he was developing a new company in the AI sector and was open to venture capital at this point,” Seal stated to TechCrunch.

Additional Backers

Further investors include Creandum and Dig Ventures. A number of well-known angel investors also participated in the funding round.

These include the CEOs of leading companies such as Datadog, Klarna, Supercell, and Wix, demonstrating significant confidence in Nexos.ai’s potential.

The startup aims to provide a platform for managing and optimizing AI workflows, addressing key challenges faced by businesses adopting LLMs.

Leveraging a Key Enabler for AI Deployment

Currently, organizations aiming to implement artificial intelligence solutions in a production environment often face the challenge of integrating numerous disparate tools. This frequently necessitates the recruitment of specialized personnel and the development of in-house expertise.

Nexos.ai is positioned to address this complexity. According to Okmanas, in a recent interview with TechCrunch, a significant disparity exists between AI pilot programs and full-scale production deployment.

While AI may demonstrate functionality and utility during initial testing phases, transitioning it to a production setting, particularly within larger enterprises, introduces critical considerations. These include ensuring consistent high availability, robust security measures, and effective cost management.

Nord Security has operated for over a decade, but was integrated into Tesonet, an incubator managing a portfolio of over twenty businesses, five years ago. Hostinger, a web-hosting provider and one of Tesonet’s holdings, recently incorporated AI-powered features into its website creation platform. Okmanas, a Hostinger board member and shareholder, indicated that challenges encountered during this process served as a foundational impetus for the creation of Nexos.ai.

“The intention was to integrate AI capabilities into our website builder, leading to the utilization of OpenAI and subsequent testing,” Okmanas explained. “Upon deployment in August, we observed billed costs reaching $150,000. This prompted an investigation into the reasons behind such substantial expenses, revealing a lack of transparency.”

Furthermore, instances of OpenAI service disruptions reinforced Okmanas’s conviction that a streamlined solution was needed to simplify the deployment, management, and optimization of the increasingly intricate AI model landscape.

Nexos.ai provides access to a diverse range of over 200 AI models through a straightforward application programming interface (API). This includes established leaders like OpenAI and Anthropic, as well as specialized, smaller language models (LLMs). This architecture allows for automatic failover to alternative providers should a primary service experience downtime.

Additionally, the platform enables organizations to dynamically switch between LLMs to control costs, responding to fluctuations in pricing or performance. Cost optimization is a key benefit.

Nexos.ai also introduces “intelligent caching” functionality. Repeated queries from multiple users can be served from a local database, reducing reliance on potentially expensive LLM interactions.

Regarding security and compliance, Nexos.ai prevents the transmission of sensitive data to LLM providers. Moreover, access can be immediately revoked for departing employees, enhancing data protection protocols.

A significant barrier to enterprise AI adoption remains data security concerns. Industries such as healthcare, finance, and insurance require assurance that sensitive information will not be compromised by LLM providers.

It is important to acknowledge that both Hostinger and NordVPN have experienced security incidents in the past, a reality faced by organizations across all sectors. This context raises questions about Nexos.ai’s data handling practices, given its role as a hosting provider.

Okmanas stated that the company plans to offer self-hosting options in the future and currently supports integration with clients’ existing internal LLMs. The platform also incorporates mechanisms to identify and redirect potentially sensitive data, such as personally identifiable information (PII), back to the originating company’s systems.

However, generic queries, like requests for business location and operating hours, will be processed directly by Nexos.ai.

The Journey from Concept to Establishment

Nexos.ai transitioned from initial concept to official incorporation within approximately six weeks. While the founders’ established reputations contributed to the swiftness of funding acquisition, favorable market conditions played a significant role.

Seal commented that the current moment represents a shift beyond the initial excitement surrounding AI. He believes practical, real-world applications are now taking precedence. Large organizations are increasingly recognizing the importance of adopting AI at a substantial level.

The rapid pace of development was significantly aided by the existing organizational structure of Tesonet. With a workforce of around 4,000 employees across its various holdings, Okmanas was able to quickly form a dedicated team of approximately 30 individuals.

This team comprised professionals he had previously collaborated with and trusted. The pre-existing working relationships minimized onboarding time and facilitated seamless integration.

“These teams possess the ability to collaborate effectively, having worked together for an extended period,” Okmanas explained. “External recruitment will also occur, but naturally requires a more protracted process.”

Nexos.ai anticipates launching its platform before the end of March. Currently, the company is collaborating with several beta customers and design partners.

Platform Launch and Early Adoption

The platform is already undergoing testing and refinement through these partnerships. This allows for valuable feedback and iterative improvements prior to the public release.

Okmanas emphasized the importance of infrastructure keeping pace with advancements in AI models. He believes this is a critical factor for successful large-scale implementation.

• The founders’ experience was key to securing funding.
• Timing in the market was also a crucial element.
• Tesonet’s existing structure enabled rapid team assembly.

The company’s focus remains on providing scalable AI infrastructure solutions for enterprise clients.