Primero raises $12 million to bring artificial intelligence to large corporations in Latin America

The adoption of artificial intelligence in large Latin American companies faces a problem that is less visible than the lack of advanced models: the difficulty of connecting the systems and data that support their operations. In this context, the startup Primero raised a $12 million seed round, led by Kaszek and General Catalyst, to expand its operations and develop AI solutions for large corporations in the region.

The round also included participation from Definition, Conviction, and 8VC, as well as angel investors linked to companies such as FEMSA, Bimbo, Aeroméxico, and Kimberly-Clark de México. The startup already works with organizations such as Kimberly-Clark de México, SmartFit, Verde Valle, Sede Café, and the Mexico City Secretariat of Economic Development.

The funding comes at a time when Latin American companies are shifting from experimenting with artificial intelligence to seeking applications capable of directly impacting their operations.

According to the IBM Institute for Business Value, 69% of executives in Latin America expect their organizations to have AI agents capable of taking autonomous actions by the end of 2026. The study also found that 85% believe they will lose their competitive advantage if they are unable to operate in real time.

The Challenge Behind Enterprise AI

Primero was founded by José Murillo, Andrés Rosales, and Santiago Buenahora, who have prior experience at Meta, 8VC, and Robinhood. The company argues that one of the main obstacles to implementing AI in large organizations lies in the existing technological infrastructure.

In these companies, relevant information is often scattered across ERP systems, CRMs, financial platforms, and warehouse management tools that were not necessarily designed to work together.

The press release cites MuleSoft's 2026 Connectivity Benchmark Report, according to which organizations manage an average of 957 applications, but only 27% are connected to one another. In Mexico, a ManageEngine study adds that 87% of companies say that technological fragmentation limits their ability to scale AI initiatives.

This situation is part of a broader challenge in Latin America. An analysis by McKinsey and the World Economic Forum published in 2026 estimates that artificial intelligence could boost regional productivity growth by between 1.9% and 2.3% annually and generate between US$1.1 trillion and US$1.7 trillion in additional economic value each year. The challenge, however, lies in moving from experimentation to implementation.

An AI layer on top of existing systems

Primero's flagship product is Primia, a platform that connects an organization's internal systems and creates an intelligence layer over them. The solution goes beyond simply integrating information sources: it also incorporates the business's own rules and logic so that AI systems can operate with greater contextual awareness.

Agents capable of automating processes that previously required human intervention operate on top of this infrastructure. The startup assures that operations can remain subject to oversight and audit mechanisms.

One of the case studies cited by Primero involves a company in the construction sector, where Primia automates 85% of a process that previously required manually reviewing each item. The remaining 15% continues to be reviewed by humans.

For another client in the consumer goods sector, the company claims that the platform helped identify more than $10 million in incorrect deductions that were previously lost due to manual processes and the fragmentation of information across ERP systems, warehouse management systems, external platforms, and accounting software.

The platform is implemented in a modular fashion. Primero's engineers work with each organization's teams to incorporate its operational context, language, and corporate culture. With each implementation, the company seeks to expand the system's ability to interpret information, reason about it, and execute actions within the organization.

From Pilots to Business Impact

For Primero, the goal is to apply this technology directly to existing business processes, rather than limiting it to isolated productivity tools.

"The world's most competitive companies can be built right here in Latin America. The region has global-scale companies that are the heart of this economy, and AI is the opportunity they have to make an unprecedented leap in competitiveness. If Verde Valle exports more, if Kimberly-Clark de México makes better decisions faster, and if large companies in this region become more efficient thanks to AI, that will be the best proof of what we do," says José Murillo, Co-CEO of Primero.

The startup currently works with organizations in sectors such as financial services, manufacturing, retail, logistics, construction, and healthcare. Its expansion plans include offices in Mexico City, Madrid, and Bogotá.
The investment also reflects international funds' interest in companies seeking to build infrastructure for the enterprise adoption of AI in the region. For General Catalyst, which co-led the funding round, the challenge lies not only in getting Latin American companies to adopt AI models but also in developing the infrastructure that will allow them to integrate these models into their operations.

"José, Andrés, and Santi collectively possess great technical ambition and a rare understanding of how to build enduring companies in Latin America," said Alex Tran, Managing Director at General Catalyst. "As companies in the region adopt AI, Primero is building the fundamental infrastructure that will make that transformation possible."

With this new funding round, Primero aims to expand its presence among large Latin American corporations. Its strategy is rooted in a specific challenge: for artificial intelligence to make decisions and execute processes within a company, it first needs to understand how that company operates and gain access to the systems where its data resides.