Startups to Watch & Tech Talents
#64 - Achei AI, workmatte.ai, ex-Leaders at Alice start something new in health, and much more...
Happy Wednesday!
As a reminder, this series is dedicated to startups and founders from LatAm that have just entered or exited stealth mode.
It is written in partnership with Pedro Mesquita from Tech Talents and aims to use data-driven tools to foster the local tech ecosystem by helping founders connect with the right people who can contribute to their success.
In case you do not know yet, “stealth mode” is when individuals are building a new business but choose not to disclose details about their projects, often for competitive reasons. This term has been used for years in the US Venture Capital ecosystem but has only recently become more common in Latin America.
Expect to receive Startups To Watch & Tech Talents every other Wednesday, separately from my traditional weekly newsletter.
This week, we’re again featuring two AI startups — one Legaltech and another one developing agents for enterprises — along with seven other stealth founders with noteworthy profiles.
👋 Looking for a Co-Founder?
My co-writer on this series is testing a new curated and private tool aimed at making meaningful connections between potential co-founders in the LatAm tech community. If you are:
Looking for a Co-Founder to join you in a new project,
Looking for a “late” Co-Founder to join an existing startup or
Simply looking to network with like-minded individuals,
he would love your input. Right now, he is starting with a small, invite-only group to ensure it truly creates value. If you're interested in being part of this initial test and helping shape this solution, click here.
Note that there is no bias in the companies and founders featured – apart from the fact that we like their stories and backgrounds. I am not an investor, nor do I get any financial compensation to promote startups and founders featured. This is intended for informational purposes only, using my solid base of subscribers to share intel about good people doing cool things, thus fostering the ecosystem.
Also note that this is just a small section of what is featured in Pedro Mesquita’s Tech Talents newsletter. If you want to receive the complete version, as soon as he releases it, be sure to subscribe to his newsletter!
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Opinions expressed here are solely my own and do not represent those of people, institutions, or organizations that I may or may not be associated with in any capacity unless explicitly stated.
🎊 Startup Launches
Founders who have just publicly announced what they are working on.
workmatte.ai
Overview
Startup Description: workmatte.ai is a platform that allows you to create, train and operate conversational artificial intelligence agents, integrated with your systems, documents and communication channels such as WhatsApp, Slack, Microsoft Teams and website.
Industry: AI
Team Size: 2
Time in Stealth: 9 months
Founder Profile
Rafael Viana - Founder at workmatte.ai
Previously featured as a Stealth Founder in Tech Talents #11 over 6 months ago.
Founder Highlights: Serial Founder, Technical Founder, Investor, Ex-Consultant
Previous Experience: Ex-CTO & Co-Founder at Caf, ex-Co-founder & CTO at Whatsgon Inc., ex-Full Stack Developer at Zap Saúde, ex-Technology Project Manager at BPS Tecnologia da Informação, degree in Computer Science from Universidade de Santa Cruz do Sul.
Headquarters: Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
Ask for an Intro: Click here
Arbitralis
Overview
Startup Description: AI-Powered Arbitration Redefining Brazil’s Legal Landscape.
Industry: Legaltech, AI
Team Size: 23+
Founder Profile
Henrique Freitas – COO/ Co-Founder at Arbitralis
Founder Highlights: Serial Founder
Previous Experience: Ex-COO/Co-Founder at Arbitralis, ex-Founder at OneMenu, ex-Co-Founder at ChaseBrasil, Bachelor of Business Administration from Assiniboine Community College, Bachelor of Business Administration from Centro Universit.
Headquarters: Belo Horizonte, Brazil
Ask for an Intro: Click here
🤫 Talents Entering Stealth
Talents with relevant experiences who have just entered stealth mode.
Achei AI (Stealth Startup)
Overview
Startup Description: Achei AI is a conversational commerce marketplace that lets users shop from any online store directly through WhatsApp — with just one account and free shipping. Instead of switching between tabs and websites, users simply send a request — via text, voice, photo, or link — and Achei finds, compares, and completes the purchase for them.
Industry: E-commerce, AI, Conversational Commerce
Team Size: 7
Time in Stealth: 2 months
Founder Profiles
Eduardo Petrelli – Co-Founder & CEO at Achei AI
Founder Highlights: Serial Founder, Previous Exit, Ex-Corporate
Previous Experience: Co-founder & CEO of James Delivery (acquired by GPA), founder of Diferente (R$30M in revenue in 2024)
Headquarters: São Paulo, Brazil / New York, USA
Ask for an Intro: Click here
Paulo Moncores – Co-Founder & CTO at Achei AI
Founder Highlights: Technical Founder, Unicorn Experience
Previous Experience: Engineering and product at VTEX and Shopify, with deep expertise in scalable e-commerce systems and AI-driven experiences.
Headquarters: São Paulo, Brazil / New York, USA
Ask for an Intro: Click here
André Leite & Felipe Cabral – Founders designing a new way to care for your health
Founder Highlights: Ex-Consultant, Ex-Corporate, Top University, Scaleup Experience
Previous Experience: Ex-Sales Director | Brokers at Alice, ex-Grow Mobility Operations, ex-Planning and Process Analyst at Yellow, ex-Associate Consultant at Bain & Company. Graduation in Business Administration from FGV.
Headquarters: São Paulo, Brazil
Time in Current Position: 1 month
Potential Co-Founder: Felipe Cabral
Ask for an Intro: Click here
Rafael Leonardo de Almeida – CTO at Stealth Startup
Founder Highlights: Technical Founder, Ex-Corporate, Scaleup Experience
Previous Experience: Ex-Head of Technology & Security at idwall, ex-Head of Information & Cyber Security at Zup Innovation, ex-IT Manager at Serasa.
Headquarters: Brazil
Time in Current Position: 1 month
Ask for an Intro: Click here
Renato Cavalheiro – Co-Founder at Stealth Startup
Founder Highlights: Masters, Top University, Scaleup Experience
Previous Experience: Ex-Vice President of Operations at Geopagos, ex-Head Of Operations at Hash, ex-Technical Sales Engineer at Pagar.me, Master of Engineering in Electrical Engineering from Texas A&M University, Bachelor's in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from UNICAMP.
Headquarters: São Paulo, Brazil
Time in Current Position: 2 months
Ask for an Intro: Click here
Douglas Sanches – Founder at Stealth Startup
Founder Highlights: Ex-Big Tech, Top University, Unicorn Experience
Previous Experience: Ex-Business Architect | Product Operations at Nubank, ex-Operations Analyst at 99Food | DiDi, ex-Strategy & Operations Coordinator at Uber. Industrial Engineering from Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro.
Headquarters: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Time in Current Position: 1 year, 10 months
Ask for an Intro: Click here
See other founder profiles that have just entered stealth mode in Tech Talents!
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