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§ Private Profile · Seattle, WA, USA
Tensor9 is a technology company.
Tensor9 delivers an enterprise platform enabling SaaS applications to operate directly within customer-owned environments. This allows vendors to deploy software across public clouds, on-premise, and air-gapped networks without complex engineering. The company simplifies SaaS delivery, addressing enterprise demands for data residency and operational control.
Founded by Michael Ten-Pow, Matt Michie, and Matt Shanker, a team of infrastructure experts, their core insight was fundamental. They believed enterprise software must execute where its data lives, solving "last mile" deployment challenges. Tensor9 was established to serve enterprise customers with stringent data security and compliance needs.
Tensor9 serves software vendors whose enterprise clients have strict data privacy and security mandates. By facilitating secure deployments inside customer perimeters, the platform enables vendors to access regulated markets. The company’s vision is to streamline enterprise deployments, ensuring efficient, secure software operation in any environment with seamless updates.
Tensor9 has raised $4.0M across 1 funding round.
Tensor9 has raised $4.0M in total across 1 funding round.
Tensor9 has raised $4.0M across 1 funding round. Most recently, it raised $4.0M Seed in May 2025.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 1, 2025 | $4M Seed | Chris Zeoli | Innovation Endeavors, Social Capital, South Park Commons, Amit Gupta, Devang Sachdev, Gert Lanckriet, Michael Stoppelman, Spencer Kimball, Level UP Ventures, Nvangels | Announced |
Tensor9 has raised $4.0M in total across 1 funding round.
Tensor9's investors include Chris Zeoli, Innovation Endeavors, Social Capital, South Park Commons, Amit Gupta, Devang Sachdev, Gert Lanckriet, Michael Stoppelman, Spencer Kimball, Level Up Ventures, NVAngels.
Tensor9 is an enterprise any-prem platform that enables SaaS vendors to deploy their software directly into customer environments like BYOC, VPC, on-prem, or air-gapped setups, keeping sensitive data private.[1][2][3] It serves SaaS companies targeting Fortune 500 and regulated industries, solving the core problem of data privacy barriers that prevent enterprises from adopting SaaS due to reluctance to share sensitive information externally.[1][2][3] By using digital twin technology for remote monitoring and operations, Tensor9 allows vendors to maintain SaaS-like observability, updates, and support without bespoke engineering, unlocking sales in sectors like AI, voice AI, enterprise search, databases, and data management; early customers include 11x, Retell AI, and Dyna AI.[2][3]
Founded in 2023 in Seattle, the company has raised funding from NVAngels, Level Up Ventures, and Wing Venture Capital, showing strong early momentum with a team of ex-AWS engineers expanding to AI-heavy markets.[1][2][4]
Tensor9 was founded in 2023 by Michael Ten-Pow (CEO, ex-AWS engineer on S3 and privacy, Princeton CS), along with co-founders Matthew Shanker (ex-AWS, ex-Epic, ex-Twitter) and Matt Michie (8+ years at Amazon, ex-Twitter/Uber/Meta).[1][2][4] Ten-Pow's idea emerged circuitously from a failed attempt to simplify SOC 2 compliance for SaaS vendors; client feedback revealed enterprises wanted software running *inside* their environments, not data sent out—a gap startups couldn't fill due to resource constraints.[2]
Launched in 2024, Tensor9 quickly gained traction with voice AI firms before expanding to enterprise search and data tools, leveraging the founders' AWS expertise to "rewire the internet for privacy" by exchanging software instead of data.[2][4]
Tensor9 rides the enterprise AI and data privacy wave, where businesses crave SaaS/AI innovation but demand zero data exfiltration amid rising regulations like GDPR and sector-specific rules in finance/healthcare.[2][3] Timing is ideal post-2024 AI boom, as hyperscalers push multi-cloud but enterprises prioritize sovereignty—Tensor9 bridges this by making "software portability" as easy as SaaS, influencing the ecosystem by empowering startups to penetrate Fortune 500 without multi-million ops teams.[1][2]
It amplifies AI adoption in regulated verticals, countering "SaaS fatigue" with hybrid models, and supports market forces like cloud-agnostic tools amid vendor lock-in fears.[3]
Tensor9 is poised to dominate any-prem as AI agents and enterprise tools demand embedded deployment; expect expansion into more AI/data sectors, international data residency plays, and potential acquisitions by hyperscalers seeking privacy edges.[2][3] Trends like federated learning and zero-trust will fuel growth, evolving its influence from enabler to standard for SaaS-to-enterprise transitions—watch for Series A and broader adoption by 2026. This privacy pivot unlocks the "final frontier" for SaaS, turning data silos into revenue moats.[1][2]