Yale Student Founders Secure $5.1M to Build AI-Powered Social Network

Two Yale student founders have raised $5.1 million in pre-seed funding for Series, an AI-powered social networking platform designed to make introductions through iMessage.

Investors who participated in the round include Venmo co-founder Iqram Magdon-Ismail, Pear VC, Reddit CEO Steve Huffman, and GPTZero founder Edward Tian.

The fresh capital will be used to hire more engineers and expand product capabilities.

Related Post: Yale Students Raise $3.1M in 14 Days to Build an AI-Powered Social Network

Series is a Next-Gen AI Social Network

Founded by Genz Yale seniors Nathaneo Johnson and Sean Hargrow, Series positions itself as a next-generation social network rather than solely an AI application. The platform works by enabling users to text a dedicated Series AI number via iMessage. 

Users describe who they want to connect with, and the AI replies with a curated carousel of up to 10 profiles. Each profile shows a photo and the user’s stated goal. With the “share” feature, users can start a private conversation by long-pressing a profile; there is no need to swap personal contact information directly.

Johnson, who is studying computer science and economics, is a founder during a unique moment in tech history, defined by rapid AI advancements and more investor money than ever before. He belongs to the next generation of young founders whose businesses and mindsets are AI-first from inception. 

Investors say this gives young founders a head start over incumbents and veteran founders who are trying to pivot and catch up. He sees the industry undergoing a massive shift in technology from user interfaces to conversational interfaces, like the move from Google search to ChatGPT. It’s “where you’re used to scrolling through libraries and clicking on websites versus conversing with AI or something else to quickly identify what you’re looking for.”

Related Post: Series Hits 1M Messages by Reimagining Social Connection With AI

The Founding Story of Series

Series began when the founders realized how powerful “warm connections” were. They discovered this while interviewing business leaders for a Yale podcast. That idea pushed them to build an AI tool to help people make those connections. After testing a few different ideas, they landed on the current version of Series. 

Their funding journey, which reads like a startup fairy tale, began two weeks after Johnson posted a trailer about the AI social startup on LinkedIn. The post went viral online and within the college entrepreneurial community. led to a first Zoom call with Anne Lee Skates, who started her own fund after leaving a16z. 

The conversation blossomed, prompting Johnson and Hargrow, both juniors at Yale, to fly immediately to Silicon Valley to begin fundraising. Within 14 days, the college founders closed their round, raising $3.1 million.

In late 2025, the social network on iMessage announced that it had exchanged over 1 million messages and reached 10,000 daily active users. It did all of this without feeds, followers, or the anxiety that has driven an entire generation away from public posting.

Related Post: Series Rush Uses AI Robot ‘Yuri’ to Shake Up College Networking

How the New Raise Will Power the Startup

Series will use its fresh capital to hire more engineers and expand product capabilities. After graduation, the company will remain on the East Coast and currently operates out of an office in Chelsea, New York (it often makes the two-hour commute from New Haven, Connecticut, where Yale is located, to New York, Johnson said).

“We have built an initial network for Series amongst the Ivy League and, more prominently, schools on the East Coast. Also, we have a strong belief in Silicon Alley,” Johnson told TechCrunch of the decision to stay East, matching a trend of young consumer founders picking New York over Silicon Valley. 

The platform recently opened beyond its college student base but still aims to target Gen Z and professionals. Johnson said most people use it for business reasons, though they have seen others use it for dating or to find friends. 

“Students use Series across more than 750 campuses,” he said. “Activated users on Series retain at 82% through Day 30, higher than early Facebook’s benchmark.” Others in this space include Boardy AI, which also uses AI to foster network introductions.

Remarkably, both Johnson and Hargrow have continued their studies at Yale, demonstrating a commitment to balancing their academic pursuits with entrepreneurial endeavors. This funding round also brings Series total funding to $8.2 million.

Image: Series founders Sean Hargrow and Nathaneo Johnson (left to right)