/Companies

Upbeat

DefunctYC S10

San Francisco, US · 2 employees · 13 known investors

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Upbeat is a PR service that combines software and hands-on expertise to help companies develop media strategies, run outreach campaigns, build journalist relationships, and secure media coverage. It serves Fortune 500 companies, startups, small businesses, non-profits, and individuals across any industry or geography at a lower cost than traditional PR agencies.

Also known as Conversely, Inc. · PRX Crowdbooster · Upbeat PR

ConsumerMarketing TechMedia & EntertainmentSaaSMediaUnited States of AmericaAmerica / Canada

Founders & leadership· Y Combinator alumni (S10)

DTDavid Tran
David TranCTO2010–2018David Tran co-founded Crowdbooster/Upbeat (YC S2010) and was an early engineer at Alchemy. He is currently co-founder of Flow Club.
MLMark Linsey
Mark LinseyFounderformer
RY
Ricky YeanCEO2015–2018

Investors · 13

500 GlobalreportedPalo Alto · $150K

How we know: Y Combinator's founder network · Not right? Tell us

Agrolimen Venturesreported

How we know: Y Combinator's founder network · Not right? Tell us

Draper AssociatesreportedSan Mateo · $500K – $5M

How we know: funding news · Y Combinator's founder network · Not right? Tell us

Elizabeth Yinreported

How we know: Y Combinator's founder network · Not right? Tell us

Quest Venture PartnersreportedMenlo Park · $100K – $1.5M

How we know: funding news · Y Combinator's founder network · Not right? Tell us

StartXreportedStanford · $10K – $1M

How we know: Y Combinator's founder network · Not right? Tell us

SV AngelreportedSan Francisco · $150K – $20M

How we know: funding news · Y Combinator's founder network · Not right? Tell us

Company profile

researched Aug 2026

Upbeat is a public relations provider that positions itself as a lower-cost alternative to traditional PR firms by pairing hands-on PR staff with its own software. The service covers development of a media strategy, launching outreach campaigns, building and tracking journalist relationships, and securing media coverage. Its published offering includes a detailed PR plan, a dedicated PR professional reachable by email or phone without time-based billing, a strategy and story brainstorming session, custom outreach campaigns, software to manage the PR effort and monitor media opportunities and mentions, and a hosted, automatically updating press page.

Upbeat describes pitching stories across any industry or geography, with campaign types including company and product launches, thought-leadership placement, news-peg stories, industry-trend commentary, product reviews with bloggers and influencers, seasonal stories, in-house data and research, crowdfunding campaigns, and promotional stunts. The company's site cites example placements it has helped secure in outlets such as Forbes, Investor's Business Daily, Business Insider, The Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, PCMag, CNBC, Tech Insider, and The New York Times.

Business model

Productized PR services sold on subscription and per-campaign bases rather than agency hourly billing, supported by proprietary software for campaign management, journalist relationship tracking, press pages, and media monitoring.

Published pricing starts at $2,000 per month; a package of three campaigns plus three months of service is listed at $6,000, and a one-time outreach campaign is offered at $999.

Traction

The website states Upbeat has helped over 400 companies with PR, and cites case studies including 9GAG.com, the Uber Security Team's Vendor Security Alliance, and Superbook's $3M Kickstarter campaign.

Latest developments

No dated developments are documented in the available sources; the company website continues to publish service pricing and PR advice content.

▸Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market, geography

Market position

Presents itself as a lower-cost substitute for traditional PR agencies; the site quotes Nieman Journalism Lab commenting on its attempt to improve PR pitching.

Combination of software tooling (campaign management, journalist relationship tracking, hosted press page, mentions monitoring) with a dedicated PR professional who is not billed by time, at prices below traditional agency retainers.

Technology

Proprietary PR software used to manage outreach campaigns, track journalist relationships, host an automatically updating press page, and monitor media opportunities and mentions.

Go-to-market

Direct sign-up through the website with a free consultation, an entry-level one-time campaign as a low-commitment offer, published case studies and client testimonials, and a content blog offering PR advice.

Fortune 500 companies, startups, small businesses, non-profits, side projects, and individuals with public profiles; testimonials come from an author/media figure and the Hispanic Heritage Foundation.

Geography

States it can pitch stories in any industry or geography; example placements are in U.S. national and business media.

Compiled by commissioned research from 3 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.

Key figures

latest reported
Companies servedJan 2026400 companies
One-time outreach campaign priceJan 2026$999
Package price (3 campaigns / 3 months)Jan 2026$6K
Starting monthly priceJan 2026$2K

Company-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.

Related companies · 4

Companies working in the same space as Upbeat.

Legal entities · 1

corporate structure
Conversely, Inc.

▸Research sources · 3

primary sources listed

3 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.

Frequently asked questions

What does Upbeat do?
Upbeat is a software-assisted PR service offering media strategy and outreach campaigns starting at $2,000 per month.
Who founded Upbeat?
Upbeat was founded by David Tran, Mark Linsey, Ricky Yean.
Who are Upbeat's investors?
Upbeat's investors include Y Combinator, 500 Global, Agrolimen Ventures, CRV (Charles River Ventures), Draper Associates, Elizabeth Yin, Kleiner Perkins, Maverick Ventures and 5 more.
Where is Upbeat headquartered?
Upbeat is headquartered in San Francisco, US.