Natural, a startup founded by former Ivella and Nextdoor executives, has secured $30 million in Series A funding to build payment infrastructure for autonomous AI agents. This investment seeks to bridge the gap between traditional banking and the high-speed transaction needs of AI software, positioning the firm to challenge existing payment platforms.
Detailed Coverage
Natural, an emerging player in the financial technology sector, has successfully raised $30 million in its Series A funding round led by Forerunner Ventures. This latest infusion of capital brings the company's total funding to $40 million. The startup, established in 2025, is focused on a specific niche within the digital economy: creating payment rails that allow autonomous AI agents to manage funds and complete transactions without human intervention.
The core challenge Natural seeks to address is the limitation of current payment infrastructure, which was originally designed for human-speed interactions. As AI agents increasingly take on complex responsibilities—such as vendor sourcing, price negotiation, and supply chain management—the need for systems that can process payments at machine speeds has grown. Natural intends to provide an orchestration layer that enables these AI entities to transact securely with both humans and other machines.
Strategic Focus and Leadership
The company was founded by a team with deep experience in the fintech and consumer tech sectors. Kahlil Lalji and Eric Wang, both formerly of the fintech firm Ivella, co-founded the business alongside Walt Leung, who previously served as an engineering manager at Nextdoor. Kahlil Lalji, who also oversaw the acquisition of his previous startup Ivella by Earnin, is leveraging his background in banking to build this new system. The team has actively recruited talent from established financial technology companies, including Stripe, Ramp, and Square, to bolster its engineering capabilities.
Market Landscape and Competition
Natural is entering a space where traditional payment incumbents are also investing heavily in AI-driven solutions. Stripe, for example, has been developing features to support the growing AI ecosystem. Natural plans to differentiate itself by integrating both traditional bank payment rails and stablecoin-based transactions. Other players in the emerging machine-to-machine payment space, such as Skyfire Systems, are also working on similar technological challenges, often focusing on blockchain-based solutions.
For investors and industry observers, the primary factor to track will be the adoption rate of these payment rails by AI developers and enterprises. While the promise of increased transaction volumes driven by autonomous agents is significant, the company faces the inherent challenge of competing against well-funded incumbents with deep market penetration. Future updates regarding the official public launch of the platform, integration partnerships with major banks, and the company's ability to maintain security protocols in a machine-automated environment will be key to determining its long-term viability in the competitive fintech market.