Haast raises AUD $6 million to expand AI compliance platform

Australian artificial intelligence compliance startup Haast has secured AUD $6 million in seed funding to support its global expansion and further develop its AI-powered compliance platform.

The funding round was led by Airtree and included participation from defy.vc, Aura Ventures, and Black Sheep Capital. It follows Haast's previous AUD $1.2 million pre-seed raise in 2023.

Haast's compliance solution is currently used by companies such as Telstra, Future Super, Zurich Australia & New Zealand, and the UK-based insurer and asset management firm Aviva. The platform has helped these organisations automate compliance and reduce manual review processes by as much as 80%.

According to Haast, the platform enables compliant content to go live three times faster than traditional methods and provides continuous risk monitoring across internal, external, and third-party channels. This is increasingly critical as generative AI technology boosts content output across numerous industries, resulting in a growing compliance workload that manual approaches can no longer manage efficiently.

Wessel van Keulen, Head of Regulatory Change, Frameworks & Insights at Zurich Australia & New Zealand, commented on the impact of adopting Haast's technology. "Haast represents the future of compliance. Their innovative AI technology has the potential to revolutionise how organisations like ours manage risk in a fast-evolving regulatory environment. We're excited to see how their platform will continue to transform compliance workflows for the better."

Haast's system leverages large language models (LLMs) to automate key elements of compliance, helping organisations respond to evolving regulatory requirements and limit risks such as brand damage or costly fines. The company claims that its technology adapts to changing regulations to help businesses mitigate complex risks before and after content is published.

Kunal Vankadara, Co-founder of Haast, spoke about the direction of AI in compliance workflows. "This is just the beginning," Vankadara said. "We believe compliance technology is entering a new era, where AI works hand-in-hand with human expertise to eliminate inefficiency, reduce risk and create space for more strategic work. Haast is the technology to lead that future, globally."

The newly raised seed funding is intended to facilitate Haast's expansion into the US market and the hiring of additional staff. The company also plans to develop its platform to cover new compliance domains, including automated contract review and anti-money laundering processes.

Jackie Vullinghs, Partner at Airtree, highlighted the broader significance of Haast's offering in the enterprise sector. "Haast demonstrates the transformative power of LLMs in enterprise: turning weeks of manual compliance work into hours of automated efficiency. Their technology not only accelerates operations but also strengthens risk management by adapting to evolving regulatory requirements. We're proud to back Haast as they expand internationally, helping the world's largest regulated businesses tackle their most complex compliance challenges."

Haast aims to support compliance and marketing teams operating in highly regulated sectors by offering live multi-channel monitoring and aiming to reduce manual review workload. The company's clients use the platform to move content to market more quickly and efficiently while maintaining compliance standards and reducing organisational risk.