This YC startup raised $5 million for a personal assistant to help you stay on top of your text messages

Haz Hubble and Wyatt Lansford, both 29-year-olds, co-founded the AI personal assistant startup Pally in the bustling Bay Area. Pally, launched in June as part of Y-Combinator's 2025 program, secured $5.2 million in funding. The startup aims to streamline the overwhelming world of text messages and related communication tools by offering an AI-powered assistant.

"Relationships are the single most important thing in our lives," Hubble shared with Business Insider. "We want to use technology to be better at managing those relationships, rather than having technology come in and replace these relationships." Pally has drawn interest from investors such as Cyber Fund, Y Combinator, Pioneer Fund, Founders Inc, 468 Capital, and various angel investors.

With a valuation of $30 million, Pally competes in a crowded market of AI assistants, as evidenced by Y-Combinator's backing of over 140 startups in this category. Users simply text Pally's number, and an AI-generated response welcomes them with a human-like tone. The assistant can adapt to the user's personal language style, mirroring slang or shorthand as needed.

Pally integrates with various platforms like Gmail, Outlook, Slack, Granola, Notion, and even iMessage via a separate desktop app. Users manage access, assign tasks, and edit contacts through Pally's dashboard on the website. Pally's technology leverages AI platforms like Anthropic's Claude and OpenAI's ChatGPT, along with open-source models like Kimi K3 and GLM 5.2.

The company outsource its engineering efforts to Claude Code, costing about $20,000 a month. Hubble expects to grow and market the product further, hiring an additional team member to provide a more personalized service. As the AI assistant field grows, Pally stands out by offering a more human touch to its users' daily lives.