Krux
February 17, 2026
19-Year-Old Raises $7M To Kill The Chatbot Era
Published: February 17, 2026 at 11:36 PM
Updated: February 17, 2026 at 11:36 PM
100-word summary
Skygen.AI just emerged from stealth with $7 million in seed funding and a bold claim: chatbots are over. Founded by 19-year-old Mike Shperling in San Francisco, the startup built autonomous AI agents that can actually control software like humans do. Think AI clicking through your CRM, ERP, or banking apps two to three times faster than current tools, learning as it goes. The platform uses isolated virtual machines and zero-trust security, so your data stays locked down. Instead of answering questions, these agents complete entire workflows autonomously. If Skygen delivers, enterprises could automate digital labor at scale, turning AI from assistant to employee.
What happened
Skygen.AI just emerged from stealth with $7 million in seed funding and a bold claim: chatbots are over. Founded by 19-year-old Mike Shperling in San Francisco, the startup built autonomous AI agents that can actually control software like humans do. Think AI clicking through your CRM, ERP, or banking apps two to three times faster than current tools, learning as it goes. The platform uses isolated virtual machines and zero-trust security, so your data stays locked down. Instead of answering questions, these agents complete entire workflows autonomously.
Why it matters
If Skygen delivers, enterprises could automate digital labor at scale, turning AI from assistant to employee.