Prentis, a new AI research lab focused on computer-use models co-founded by serial entrepreneur Ritankar Das and tech luminaries Reid Hoffman and Mark Pincus, is in advanced talks to raise $100 million at a $1 billion valuation.

Launched in April, the startup aims to develop AI agents that automate routine office workflows across documents and systems, such as handling insurance claims and automating customs duty refunds without human intervention.The company has secured contracts worth up to $50 million with healthcare providers, manufacturers, and retailers.Prentis claims its Hive-32B model outperforms competitors like OpenAI’s GPT-5.4 and Anthropic’s Claude Opus 4.6 on benchmarks measuring task completion in Windows applications and screen navigation.While the startup emphasizes cost efficiency compared to frontier APIs, TechCrunch has not independently verified its benchmark claims.Prentis faces competition from major players like Anthropic and OpenAI, which are also developing AI agents for productivity tasks.The company’s co-founders include Hoffman, former LinkedIn CEO and Greylock partner, and Pincus, Zynga founder and Reinvent Capital head.

With over 25 employees hired, including researchers from Google DeepMind and Meta, Prentis positions itself as a disruptor in the crowded AI automation space.