Why we invested in Kudos, the smart shopping assistant that helps consumers maximize the value of every dollar they spend
The manual and confusing process of optimizing credit card spending poses a significant challenge for consumers. Without automation, individuals must navigate complex rewards programs and terms, which deters many from even participating. Consequently, a majority of credit card holders unknowingly forfeit substantial rewards annually, representing lost value for consumers and missed engagement opportunities for financial institutions.
Kudos addresses this with its smart wallet solution that automatically maximizes consumer rewards and benefits on every purchase. The Kudos smart shopping assistant even considers hidden card perks such as purchase protection and extended warranty coverage to ensure users extract the maximum value from every dollar spent. Interestingly, it achieves its mission while simultaneously delivering value to consumers, merchants and financial institutions.
Kudos offers an app and browser extensions accessible on mobile and desktop, ensuring a seamless experience across devices. Recent additions to their offering include MariaGPT, an AI-powered card discovery tool that can answer credit card-related questions on 3,000+ cards; Dream Wallet, which suggests cards based on spending habits; and Kudos Boost, providing personalized rewards from 15,000+ partner brands like Walmart and Sephora. Since its seed funding, Kudos has amassed over 200,000 registered users and boosted its annualized checkout Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) to $200 million. With its Series A funding, Kudos aims to fuel further growth by rolling out new products and services. These include an AI-driven hub for spend optimization insights, expanding MariaGPT into a comprehensive personal finance assistant, and introducing a portal for members to seamlessly book flights using their points—all within the Kudos platform.
We’re excited to invest in the founding team of Kudos. CEO Tikue Anazodo previously led product initiatives for Google Pay’s expansion in Asia and launched buy now, pay later (BNPL) on Amazon while at Affirm. His network from Google has facilitated business development with the major card issuers in the United States. Additionally, co-founder Ahmad Ismail’s previous experience as a lead product manager building personalized advertising tools for merchants at Google and later at Affirm further positions the team for growth. With the latest funding, we know Kudos will continue to build on its transformative platform, enabling even more consumers to take control of their finances with confidence and ease.
Carlos Castellanos is an investor at Samsung Next. Samsung Next’s investment strategy is limited to its own views and does not reflect the vision or strategy of any other Samsung business unit, including, but not limited to, Samsung Electronics.