Ex-Deliveroo execs secure Google AI funding for property search engine

A trio of former Deliveroo executives have secured investment for a new property search engine start-up backed by a Google artificial intelligence fund.

Sky News understands that Jitty will announce this week that it has raised $2m from investors led by Gradient Ventures, an AI fund established by the global technology behemoth.

Jitty, which will target homebuyers, uses so-called large-language model (LLM) technologies, as well as computer-vision, to read property floor plans and understand photographs and descriptions of homes.

It has assembled a waiting list of thousands of users ahead of its launch.

Unlike many players in the online property search market, Jitty will not charge estate agents fees to list properties or receive enquiries.

It says this will enable it to match homebuyers' requirements more effectively, and that the sophistication of its AI capabilities will provide a comprehensive property market resource.

The business was co-founded by chief executive Graham Paterson, James Storer and Daniel Cooper - all of whom worked for Deliveroo.

"All three co-founders have bought homes in the last few years, and we couldn't believe how bad the process is at every single stage," Mr Paterson said.

"Some parts, like being in a chain or having complex legal issues, are tricky to solve, but just being able to understand the market with a great user experience should be easy."

Other backers of the Jitty funding round included big-name venture capital funds' scouting arms such as Sequoia and Atomico.

A number of prominent angel investors have also participated.

Jitty will initially launch in the UK, and has plans to expand into other European markets.

"Artificial intelligence and specifically large-language models are bringing new experiences and workflows to all aspects of our lives," said Darian Shirazi, general partner at Gradient Ventures.

"We're excited to partner with Graham and the team at Jitty as they use LLMs and computer vision to completely reinvent the home buying experience."