**San Francisco**: Settle, a startup born from Northeastern University’s Semester In Silicon Valley programme, employs AI to automate and enhance responses to Requests for Proposals, aiming to solve industry-wide ‘RFP fatigue’ and improve accuracy in business procurement processes.
A new startup, Settle, has emerged from Northeastern University’s Semester In Silicon Valley programme, aimed at revolutionising the response process for Requests for Proposals (RFPs). Founded by recent graduates Will Feldman, Alex Nikanov, Dilan Bhat, and Ben Wetzell, Settle leverages artificial intelligence to tackle what many in the industry refer to as “RFP fatigue.”
RFPs play a crucial role in the procurement process, enabling businesses to solicit proposals from contractors for various jobs. Despite their long history, dating back to the Industrial Revolution, many stakeholders find that the process of responding to RFPs can be tedious and inefficient. “When a company wants to purchase from one of these vendors, they come up with a list of questions or even hundreds of pages of questions,” explained Feldman, who serves as Settle’s head of product. He added that this makes the process “extremely time consuming” for the contractors vying to win bids.
Settle provides a solution by functioning as a search-and-answer platform that employs generative AI and vector search technologies to streamline the task of answering RFP questions. According to Nikanov, who oversees the engineering division, the AI is designed to draw upon previous answers and corporate data to generate accurate responses, thus mitigating the risks of misinformation, often referred to as “hallucination” in AI terminology. “When these companies answer these massive lists of questions, they need precision accuracy,” he noted.
Currently, Settle integrates OpenAI’s API but anticipates potential collaborations with other AI providers such as Anthropic and Meta in the future. To date, the startup has established connections with several clients and is exploring the potential to make this endeavour their full-time commitment.
Initially, the entrepreneurs aimed to address onboarding processes within corporate settings. However, feedback from potential clients indicated a greater urgency in addressing RFP-related challenges. Bhat, Settle’s CEO, noted, “We weren’t getting much of a response from our onboarding product… but our salesmen are constantly trying to put out fires with these RFPs.”
Since pivoting in May 2023, the team has embraced their new focus on the procurement system with enthusiasm. Wetzell, the head of sales, has been actively reaching out to potential clients, utilising skills honed during the entrepreneurship programme. “There was no better environment than San Francisco to have these conversations,” he stated, reflecting on the programme’s demanding assignments that included engaging directly with the public for valuable feedback.
The programme has provided not only essential skills but also a supportive network. Zafar Naeem, the faculty director of the Silicon Valley initiative, continues to offer guidance as the founders navigate the complexities of entrepreneurship. Bhat remarked on the significance of this transition, stating, “It’s been really cool to see this transition from something that was definitely a school class project to all of a sudden thinking, ‘Wait, this could be real.’”
With aspirations to scale their impact on the industry, Settle exemplifies how innovative solutions can emerge from academic environments and evolve into meaningful business ventures.
Source: Noah Wire Services
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