Numeral Raises $35 Million to Automate Sales Tax with AI

Numeral, an AI-powered platform to stay compliant with US sales tax and global VAT, led by Sam Ross and Matt DuVall, has raised $35 million in Series B led by Mayfield, with participation from other investors including Benchmark, Uncork Capital, Y Combinator, and Mantis, valuing the company at $350 million.

Numeral's founder saw an opportunity for AI to simplify sales tax management by acting like a human tax accountant, tracking laws across 11,000+ jurisdictions, handling tax mail, and filing payments. Since sales tax rules are largely unambiguous, AI can manage most aspects reliably with minimal risk of errors or hallucinations.

In the past year, the startup’s revenue has grown 3.5×, now serving over 2,000 software and e-commerce clients, including EightSleep, Graza Olive Oil, and Manus.

Sam Ross, co-founder and CEO of Numeral, conceived the idea for his sales tax compliance startup while traveling the world after working as a product manager at Airbnb. In 2018, he ran several self-funded e-commerce brands, including an online jewelry store and a vitamin DTC site, and was frustrated by the complex process of handling sales tax. That year, a Supreme Court ruling required e-commerce and SaaS companies to collect taxes in all customer jurisdictions, dramatically increasing the burden. In 2023, encouraged by former Airbnb colleague Gustaf Alstromer at Y Combinator, Ross set out to build a startup that automates every aspect of sales tax management.