Fundamental Research Labs nabs $30M to build AI agents across verticals

Fundamental Research Labs, an applied AI research company formerly known as Altera, has secured $30 million in Series A funding led by Prosus, with participation from Stripe CEO Patrick Collison. The company operates with an unconventional structure, maintaining multiple teams focused on diverse AI applications across verticals, including gaming, prosumer apps, core research, and platform development. Founded by Dr. Robert Yang, a former MIT faculty member, the startup aims to be a “historical” company rather than follow a typical startup model. It is already generating revenue by charging users for its AI agents after a seven-day trial period. Among its products is Shortcut, a spreadsheet-based AI agent described as a “superhuman excel agent” that outperforms first-year analysts from top firms like McKinsey and Goldman Sachs in accuracy and speed. The company’s offerings also include a general-purpose consumer assistant and other AI tools like Fairies. Prosus investment partner Sandeep Bakshi highlighted the team’s mission-driven