Burnt, a San Francisco-based startup building artificial intelligence tools for the food supply chain, has raised $3.8 million in seed funding as it looks to accelerate development of its platform and expand its reach across the industry.

The funding round was led by Penny Jar Capital, with participation from Scribble Ventures, Formation VC, and angel investor Dan Scheinman.

Founded by Joseph “JJ” Jacob, Rhea Karimpanal, and Chandru Shanmugasundaram, Burnt is focused on addressing operational inefficiencies that continue to affect food distributors, suppliers, and procurement teams. The company has developed an AI-powered platform designed to automate workflows that are often trapped within legacy enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems and manual processes.

The food supply chain remains heavily dependent on emails, spreadsheets, phone calls, and outdated software for many day-to-day operations. Burnt’s platform is designed to work alongside existing systems rather than replace them, helping businesses automate repetitive tasks and reduce the amount of manual data entry required to process orders and manage operations.

According to the company, its technology can capture information from multiple sources, including emails, voicemails, and spreadsheets, and automatically transfer that information into ERP systems. By reducing manual processing time, Burnt aims to help food distributors and suppliers improve efficiency while allowing employees to focus on customer relationships and higher-value work.

Chief Executive Officer Joseph Jacob has highlighted his firsthand experience in the food industry as a key driver behind the company’s creation. Jacob previously worked across various parts of the food supply chain, including procurement and operations, giving him direct exposure to the challenges faced by businesses that rely on fragmented systems and labor-intensive workflows.

Burnt’s leadership team combines experience in food distribution, product development, and enterprise technology. Co-founder and Chief Product Officer Rhea Karimpanal comes from a family background connected to India’s spice trade and has worked on products for traditional industries. Meanwhile, Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer Chandru Shanmugasundaram has experience building software solutions for operational businesses and technology companies.

The company plans to use the new capital to continue building its AI-powered operating system and expand its suite of automation agents. While the initial focus has been on sales-order processing, Burnt intends to broaden its capabilities across procurement, distribution, accounting, finance, and compliance functions.

Burnt says its platform is already processing more than $10 million worth of orders each month for early customers. Among the companies using the technology is La Tua Pasta, a specialty food business that has adopted the platform to streamline operational workflows.

The startup is targeting a large market opportunity. Food distribution remains one of the world’s most complex supply chains, involving thousands of suppliers, distributors, manufacturers, and retailers. Despite the scale of the sector, many businesses continue to rely on software systems that were designed primarily for record-keeping rather than automation and intelligent decision-making.

Investors backing the company believe this creates a significant opportunity for AI-driven solutions. By combining deep industry expertise with modern automation technology, Burnt aims to become a central operational layer for food supply-chain businesses seeking to modernize without replacing their existing infrastructure.

The funding follows Burnt’s participation in Y Combinator’s Summer 2025 batch and marks an important milestone as the company seeks to scale its technology and establish a stronger presence across the food industry. With fresh capital in hand, Burnt plans to invest in product development, customer growth, and the continued expansion of its AI-powered workflow automation platform.

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