Grade
YC W26San Francisco, US · Founded 2025 · 2 employees · 1 known investors
Grade is a payment platform that automates payouts to creators across borders, handling tax compliance, KYC, and invoicing in multiple countries. It serves content creators, influencers, and UGC creators hired by companies and agencies.
Also known as Creator Check
AI & Machine LearningCreator EconomyFintechSaaSPaymentsPayrollAIUnited States of AmericaAmerica / Canada
Founders & leadership· Y Combinator alumni (W26)
Grade was founded in 2025 by Lotanna Ezeike and James Heaney.
LE
Lotanna Ezeikein𝕏Co-Founder, CEOLotanna Ezeike was a product lead at Barclays focused on digital payments, and previously managed contractor payouts at another venture-backed company. He is now building Grade, an API for performance-based payments to AI agents and contractors.
JH
James Heaneyin𝕏Co-Founder, CTOHe previously founded and exited a cryptography startup and a consumer mobile app called PrayScreen, and has experience in hardware engineering.
Investors · 1
Competitors · 4
by search overlap
Intuit®5 shared keywordsIntuit develops financial software products—including TurboTax, Credit Karma, QuickBooks, and Mailchimp—for consumers and small businesses to manage taxes, credit, accounting, and marketing. It serves approximately 100 million customers worldwide.
Tipalti3 shared keywordsTipalti is an AI-powered finance automation platform that automates accounts payable, mass payments, procurement, and employee expenses for growing companies. The platform serves businesses seeking to streamline financial operations and reduce manual finance tasks.
Popular Pays3 shared keywordsPopular Pays is an influencer marketing and creator management platform that connects brands with creators for campaign development and execution. The company serves brands seeking to collaborate with content creators aligned with their values.
Lightricks3 shared keywordsLightricks develops AI video generation models and a creative platform (LTX Studio) that enable creators to produce high-quality videos efficiently on consumer hardware. The company serves content creators and small businesses with generative AI tools for video editing and storytelling.
Companies competing with Grade for the same Google search keywords, organic and paid, via search-intersection analysis.
In the news
Frequently asked questions
- What does Grade do?
- Grade is a payment platform that automates payouts to creators across borders, handling tax compliance, KYC, and invoicing in multiple countries. It serves content creators, influencers, and UGC creators hired by companies and agencies.
- Who founded Grade?
- Grade was founded by Lotanna Ezeike, James Heaney in 2025.
- Who are Grade's investors?
- Grade's investors include Y Combinator.
- Where is Grade headquartered?
- Grade is headquartered in San Francisco, US.