Avante Raises $30M to Expand Its AI Platform for Global Benefits Teams

Led by Frist Cressey Ventures, the Series A will fuel global expansion and scale an always-on network of AI agents across the entire benefits lifecycle to uncover hidden savings, strengthen vendor negotiations, automate complex benefits work, and guide employees year-round.

SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Avante, the enterprise AI platform for benefits teams, today announced $30 million in Series A funding led by Frist Cressey Ventures, with participation from new investors Sorenson Capital, Hearst Ventures, and Morgan Stanley Next Level Fund, as well as existing investor FUSE. The round brings Avante’s total funding to $40 million.

The investment will support Avante’s global expansion and further development of AI agents that help benefits teams analyze programs, evaluate vendors, and complete recurring work. It will also expand personalized guidance and actions that help employees understand and use their benefits.

“Benefits teams are responsible for one of the largest and most consequential investments their companies make, yet they’re still operating with outdated information, archaic spreadsheets, and technology built for another era,” said Rohan D’Souza, CEO and co-founder of Avante. “We’re combining purpose-built technology with real-time automation and years of benefits expertise across the AI stack, resulting in 100x leverage for the people whose decisions shape the health, financial security, and well-being of millions. Few areas of work touch people’s lives more directly, and benefits teams deserve technology built for the importance of what they do.”

Employer benefits are AI's next frontier

Purpose-built AI platforms now streamline, accelerate, and automate expert-level work, and benefits are an obvious next frontier. At most companies, a small group of experts manages one of the organization’s largest investments, navigating outsized complexity and compliance requirements across vendors, plans, and countries while making decisions that directly affect employees’ lives.

Employers worldwide are absorbing another year of higher medical costs, with large employers projecting a median 9.2% health care cost increase for 2027. HR teams are being asked to manage these costs without cutting benefits, often with limited visibility and relying on lagging data and offline processes.

“As a physician, I saw again and again how hard it is for patients and their families to find their way through our health care system,” said Senator Bill Frist, M.D., co-founder and managing partner of Frist Cressey Ventures. “Avante is harnessing AI to make that system easier to navigate, so employees get better care and employers get relief from costs that keep climbing. Its team brings rare depth in technology, health care and benefits, and has already earned the trust of leading employers. We’re proud to partner with Avante to reach more companies and make a lasting difference for the families who count on them.”

Built for real benefits work

With the new funding, Avante is expanding its global capabilities and building on last week’s beta launch of Ava Agents, which take on recurring benefits work and return finished outputs for teams to review.

For employers, Avante helps benefits teams evaluate vendor performance, prepare for renewals, and identify gaps in their programs. Agents compare contracts to actual claims, review plan documents for errors and inconsistencies, and track deadlines, helping teams complete work that would be otherwise impractical or impossible at scale.

For employees, Avante makes complex benefits easier to understand and use. They can ask questions about their own plans, including family benefits or coverage for a new diagnosis, and receive personalized, around-the-clock guidance without waiting for the benefits team to respond.

Customer results and company growth

In the 18 months since its launch, Avante has expanded its customer base and partnerships, with customers reporting faster analysis, increased benefits utilization, and more time for strategic work.

“Avante has been a game changer for the employee experience at Real Chemistry and the way our Benefits team works. With 83% of our U.S. workforce engaging with Avante, employees have on-demand, trusted benefits guidance at their fingertips. By making benefits easier to navigate and reducing our administrative burden, Avante allows us to focus on the strategic priorities that support our continued growth,” said Olga Reupert, SVP Total Rewards, HR Global Operations & Enablement at Real Chemistry.

• Customer growth: With bookings up nearly 5x year over year and 100% of customers eligible for renewal having renewed, Avante has grown to a customer base of more than 70 accounts. Examples of customer results include:
  • Samsung Semiconductor: 66% more employees and dependents found and used the mental health support already available to them.
  • News Corp: Significantly reduced decision-making time by enabling them to use the team’s own data to inform its choices.
• Employee impact: Across its customer base, Avante now helps more than 385,000 employees and family members understand their benefits and get the right care year-round.
• Deepened partnerships: Avante has launched strategic partnerships with several leading benefits advisors, including Gallagher, OneDigital, Segal Benz, Howden, and USI Insurance Services.

“Over the last year, our Avante solution has answered more than 8,500 questions from our employees, and we expect quite a few more during open enrollment,” said Brooke Cardarella, Chief People Officer at Personify Health. “In addition to supporting our employees’ benefits navigation, it gives us invaluable insights into what they need and what’s most confusing. Ultimately, we can improve our internal communication and make more intentional program investments.”

About Avante

Avante is the enterprise AI platform for benefits teams. Benefits is one of the most complex, high-stakes functions in any company, and Avante’s purpose-built agents take on end-to-end benefits work, from checking vendor contracts against claims to preparing leadership reports to helping employees use and understand their benefits. Samsung Semiconductor, Real Chemistry, Zscaler and News Corp use Avante today to keep costs in check, support employees across the globe, and get more from their benefits investment. Learn more at avante.ai.