The Bath-based startup’s AI-powered platform matches families with trusted carers, aiming to restore dignity, fairness, and efficiency to social care.
Gladys, a Bath-based AI-powered home care platform, has raised £1.5 million in seed funding to accelerate its mission to rebuild the UK’s struggling home care sector.
The round was led by Cornerstone VC, with participation from Exceptional Ventures, Embryo Ventures, Ufi Ventures, Houghton Street Ventures, and the Conduit EIS Impact Fund.
Founded in 2023 by Georgina Robinson, a former barrister, and Alex Sorisi, a health tech entrepreneur, Gladys combines artificial intelligence with a mission to deliver fair pay, reliability, and dignity in home care, addressing what the founders describe as a “failing system.”
“We all know that Britain’s care system is broken. Re-arranging deck-chairs on a sinking ship will not cut it” said Georgina Robinson, co-founder and CEO of Gladys. “People are dying unnecessarily, and brilliant carers are undervalued and underpaid. Gladys is using this investment to supercharge its technology and deliver the service we would want for our loved ones.”
Gladys’ platform uses AI-driven smart agents to match families with local, vetted carers while handling logistics such as scheduling, compliance, and payments. The system eliminates traditional intermediaries, allowing carers to earn up to 65% more than through legacy agencies and helping families access care faster and more affordably.
“Rising care costs and an overstretched social care system have left families stretched thin as they think about their elderly loved ones” said Rodney Appiah, Managing Partner at Cornerstone VC. “Gladys makes it easy to find and book trusted caregivers, giving families peace of mind and helping people grow old with dignity in the home they cherish.”
Operating across a 20,000 km service area, Gladys already delivers tens of thousands of hours of independent living assistance, leveraging AI to automate complex logistics and route planning for its growing network of carers. The platform also supports career development and community-building within the caregiving workforce.
The company plans to expand across the UK by 2026, aiming to deliver hundreds of thousands of hours of home support while advancing its AI infrastructure to scale efficiently.
By tackling the industry’s most entrenched pain points, fragmented systems, poor working conditions, and inconsistent service, Gladys positions itself as a tech-enabled alternative to incumbents like Cera, Elder, and SuperCarers.