Series, a social networking startup built around AI-assisted introductions via iMessage, has raised $5.1 million in a pre-seed funding round.
Investors include Pear VC, Venmo co-founder Iqram Magdon-Ismail, Reddit CEO Steve Huffman, and GPTZero founder Edward Tian. The company was founded in 2025 by Yale students Nathaneo Johnson and Sean Hargrow, who are both still completing their undergraduate studies.
What The Company Does
Series is building a social networking platform that operates entirely through iMessage, positioning itself as a conversational alternative to traditional social apps. Instead of a standalone feed-based interface, users interact with the platform by texting a dedicated phone number.
After sending a message describing who they are and who they want to meet, users receive curated “shares” from Series AI. These appear as swipeable carousels of profiles, each containing a photo and a short description of what the person is looking for, whether that is professional connections, collaboration opportunities, or other types of introductions.
Users can then press and hold a profile to initiate a private conversation through the same iMessage thread, without exchanging personal phone numbers. The system is designed to reduce friction in making introductions while keeping communication inside a familiar messaging environment.
The company frames itself less as an AI tool and more as a new type of social network built around conversational interaction rather than feeds or search.
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Market Context / Industry Background
Series is part of a broader shift in consumer internet products toward AI-mediated interactions and conversational interfaces. As large language models become more capable, startups are increasingly exploring systems where discovery, networking, and matching are handled through dialogue rather than scrolling-based feeds or manual search.
This trend also reflects a transition away from traditional social media structures, where users passively consume content, toward systems that actively generate connections based on intent. Messaging platforms like iMessage provide a natural entry point for this shift due to their high engagement and low friction for communication.
At the same time, investor interest in early-stage AI-native consumer products has grown significantly, particularly those built by younger founders who are designing with AI as a core system rather than an added feature.
Series is also positioned within a competitive landscape of networking and matching platforms, where differentiation increasingly depends on speed of connection, personalization, and retention rather than network size alone.
Founder Commentary
Co-founder and CEO Nathaneo Johnson said the idea behind Series emerged from observing the value of warm, trust-based connections during his time at the Yale Entrepreneurial Society.
He described a broader shift in how users interact with technology, moving from browsing-based systems toward conversational ones.
“The industry is undergoing a massive shift from user interfaces to conversation interfaces, where you’re used to scrolling through libraries and clicking through websites versus conversing with AI to quickly identify what you’re looking for,” he said.
Johnson and co-founder Sean Hargrow began building early versions of the product during their time at Yale, iterating through multiple concepts before settling on the current iMessage-based system. The company formally began fundraising in early 2025 and has since built a team of eight.
To support its launch, the founders produced a viral LinkedIn video created in under 24 hours, which helped generate early investor interest and led to their first commitment shortly after publication.
Johnson also noted that the company has seen strong early engagement across college campuses, with users active across more than 750 institutions and a reported 82% retention rate at Day 30.
Growth Plans / Use Of Funds
The new funding will be used to expand Series’ engineering team and further develop its product capabilities, particularly around AI-driven matching and conversational flows within iMessage.
The company is expanding beyond its initial college focus, targeting both Gen Z users and early-career professionals. While usage spans multiple categories including professional networking, some users have also adopted the platform for social discovery and dating-related connections.
Series is currently based in New York, operating out of an office in Chelsea while maintaining strong ties to Yale in New Haven. The team frequently travels between both locations as it builds out its East Coast presence.
Looking ahead, the company plans to continue scaling its user base while refining its AI-driven introduction system, with a focus on improving connection quality and engagement across its network.
About Series
Series is a US-based social networking startup founded in 2025 by Yale students Nathaneo Johnson and Sean Hargrow. The company builds an AI-powered networking system that operates through iMessage, enabling users to discover and connect with others based on shared intent and context. Series focuses on facilitating warm introductions through conversational AI, aiming to replace traditional feed-based social networking with direct, message-based interaction.
