San Francisco–based startup Principle, founded by Ukrainian entrepreneurs, has secured $2 million in a pre-seed funding round to develop its AI-powered strategic forecasting platform for businesses and governments, according to public reports.
The funding round was led by SMRK VC and SMOK Ventures, with participation from RideHome AI Fund, a16z Scout Fund, Bain Capital Scout Fund, and Unpopular Ventures.
Launched in 2024 by founders Artur Kiulian and Yurii Filipchuk, Principle builds artificial intelligence tools that help organizations simulate and forecast strategic decisions under complex future scenarios. The company’s suite of models creates digital twins of companies, competitors, regulators, and market forces to run simulations that predict how different strategies play out.
Principle positions itself as a solution to a key problem faced by large organizations — reacting too slowly to structural changes and incorrectly interpreting market signals. Its platform continuously updates forecasts with real-time market data, helping leadership teams anticipate competitor moves, regulatory shifts, pricing changes, and mergers & acquisitions dynamics.
The startup’s platform is already in pilot use with multiple Fortune 500 companies, government agencies, and energy sector leaders, where it supports strategic planning and scenario analysis.
In addition, Principle has partnered with organizations in the Middle East, working with institutions like the Dubai Centre for Artificial Intelligence and the Dubai Future Foundation on AI models designed to improve healthcare system resilience and other public-sector outcomes.
Principle trains its proprietary models on AWS Nova architecture, aiming to enhance the accuracy and agility of its forecasting capabilities. The platform goes beyond traditional analytics or generic AI — it simulates multi-actor futures and strategic paths using dynamic market signals rather than static data snapshots.
The company also received support from the Google for Startups Ukraine Support Fund as a pre-seed startup.
Earlier, in 2025, Principle signed a memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine to develop national AI capabilities and has completed projects in the Middle East.
Principle’s founders bring experience at Google and CERN, and have previously worked on strategic technological initiatives for the U.S. government and global corporations. The company is headquartered in San Francisco, with a team composed of AI researchers and strategic technologists.
