Fundraising Fox

ZOKO

YC W21

Bengaluru, IN · Founded 2021 · 18 employees · 4 known investors

Find your way into ZOKO

141 people in our graph share verified history with the ZOKO team — schools, employers, funds. One of them is your warm intro.

Andrea Echstenkamperunlockedknows Arjun Paul · together at University of Florida (overlapped)
knows the team · via University of Florida
×8knows the team · via INSEAD
×2knows the team · via Hilti

Zoko integrates WhatsApp messaging capabilities with Shopify stores, allowing merchants to sell products, market to customers, and provide support through WhatsApp conversations.

Also known as Bourbon Science Inc · Zoko

AI & Machine LearningE-commerceEnterprise SoftwareSaaSGenerative AIIndiaSouth AsiaPartly Remote

Founders & leadership· Y Combinator alumni (W21)

ZOKO was founded in 2021 by Arjun Paul.

APArjun Paul
Arjun Paulin𝕏Founder · Product @ ZokoFounder of ZOKO, which integrates WhatsApp messaging with Shopify stores to enable merchants to sell products and provide customer support through chat.

Investors · 4

Callapina CapitalPhiladelphia · $250K – $1M
Xeed VenturesBengaluru · $120K – $1.2M
Y CombinatorSan Francisco · $500K
iSeedreported · 2 sourcesBangalore · $250Kvia Utsav Somani · inferred

Funding

SEC filings, press & company announcements

Source: company announcements and press reports — follow each round's link for the claim.

Company profile

researched Aug 2026

Zoko provides a WhatsApp-based commerce and customer engagement platform designed specifically for Shopify stores. The product syncs a merchant's Shopify catalog with WhatsApp so products can be sold directly inside WhatsApp conversations, and lets merchants send WhatsApp broadcasts to engage and convert customers at scale. A shared-inbox/CRM capability allows multiple agents to work on a single WhatsApp business number to handle customer inquiries, positioning WhatsApp as a replacement for conventional ticket-based support.

A visual automation builder, Zoko Flows, lets merchants construct workflows ranging from cash-on-delivery order confirmations to multi-step sequences that connect Shopify with third-party apps such as Judge.me. Zoko is an Official Meta Business Partner and advises customers on qualifying for the WhatsApp verified blue tick mark. The company operates under the entity Bourbon Science Inc, with listed addresses in Buford, Georgia (United States) and Koramangala, Bengaluru, Karnataka (India).

Business model

Software-as-a-service sold directly to Shopify merchants, with a 7-day free trial that requires no payment card and a published pricing page.

Subscription pricing for the WhatsApp commerce platform, entered via a 7-day free trial.

Traction

The company states that thousands of Shopify merchants use the platform, and publishes testimonials from brands including Green Soul Ergonomics, Chemist at Play, Petsy, CuidaMiMascota, WaterScience, Juicy Chemistry and Postcard.in.

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

Market position

Positions itself as a purpose-built WhatsApp solution for Shopify stores and an Official Meta Business Partner, claiming thousands of Shopify merchants as users; it notes that 93 of the top 100 Shopify brands in WhatsApp-first markets such as India and Brazil offer WhatsApp support.

Technology

WhatsApp Business integration layered on Shopify, including catalog sync with AI tools that sell products inside WhatsApp, broadcast messaging, a multi-agent WhatsApp inbox, and the Zoko Flows automation canvas with connectors to Shopify and apps such as Judge.me. A developer API is also offered.

Go-to-market

Self-serve sign-up and free trial from the company website, distribution through the Shopify app ecosystem, hands-on demo and onboarding support from the Zoko team, and content assets including case studies, a blog and comparison pages. Status as an Official Meta Business Partner is used as a trust signal.

Growing Shopify brands seeking to drive repeat revenue and provide support on WhatsApp, including merchants in "WhatsApp-first" markets such as India and Brazil. Named users span gardening, furniture, cosmetics, pet food and services, water filtration and snack-box categories.

Geography

Listed offices in Buford, Georgia, United States and Koramangala, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India, with customers referenced in WhatsApp-first markets including India and Brazil.

Compiled by commissioned research from 1 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.

Key figures

latest reported
HeadcountAug 202642
Shopify merchants using the platformJan 2026thousands (company claim)

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

Competitors · 9

by search overlap
Whatsapp Community586 shared keywordsWhatsApp is a messaging and calling application that provides text, media, and voice communication services to users across 180+ countries. The app prioritizes end-to-end encryption and operates as a standalone service focused on reliable global communication.
Respond.io293 shared keywordsRespond.io is a customer conversation platform for mid-market B2C businesses that integrates omnichannel messaging, native AI agents, and CRM context into a unified system to route inbound conversations and improve conversion rates. The platform connects WhatsApp, Instagram, TikTok, email, live chat, and voice channels with CRM data and AI-driven routing to handle high-volume customer conversations.
Delight Chat255 shared keywordsDelightChat provides an omnichannel customer support inbox that consolidates WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook, Email, and Live Chat into one dashboard with AI-assisted response drafting. It also offers a WhatsApp marketing suite for sending promotional broadcasts via the Official WhatsApp API, recovering abandoned carts, sending order notifications, and building customer segments.
Gallabox228 shared keywordsGallabox provides WhatsApp and Instagram automation tools for marketing teams to generate leads, qualify prospects, and nurture customer relationships at scale. The platform enables personalized campaigns, chatbots, and real-time analytics without requiring coding.
AiSensy224 shared keywordsAiSensy is a WhatsApp business platform that enables companies to acquire, engage, and support customers through messaging, forms, broadcasts, and payments. The platform serves 210,000+ businesses across 68+ countries seeking to increase revenue through WhatsApp communication.
Sleekflow214 shared keywordsSleekFlow provides an omnichannel inbox that connects shared email addresses (support@, sales@) alongside WhatsApp, SMS, and chat, with AI-assisted replies, two-way email sync, and automation for sales and support teams. It targets B2C brands managing customer communication across multiple channels in one platform.
Trengo164 shared keywordsTrengo Voice is a calling feature built into the Trengo customer engagement platform that lets support teams make and receive calls with each customer's conversation history, tickets, and orders visible during the call. It offers local/national numbers, IVR menus, call routing, recordings, and AI voice agents that integrate with Trengo's inbox and automation tools.
Rasayel163 shared keywordsRasayel is a team communication platform built on WhatsApp Business that enables sales and support teams to manage conversations at scale with features like shared inboxes, role-based permissions, and native WhatsApp integrations. It serves B2B sales teams and customer-facing organizations that want to leverage WhatsApp for customer communication without managing multiple device limitations.
Twilio160 shared keywordsTwilio provides a cloud-based communications platform that enables businesses to integrate voice, messaging, and video into applications using APIs. The platform combines communication channels, contextual data, and AI orchestration for enterprises and developers building customer experiences.

Companies competing with ZOKO for the same Google search keywords, organic and paid, via search-intersection analysis.

In the news

Zoko (YC W21) – Funding, Valuation, Investors, Newsparsers.vc · Jan 2026🧠 Zoko: Unleash AI inside your WhatsApp Business numberycombinator.com · Jul 2023

▸Research sources · 1

primary sources listed

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

Frequently asked questions

What does ZOKO do?
Zoko is a WhatsApp marketing, sales and support platform built for Shopify merchants.
Who founded ZOKO?
ZOKO was founded by Arjun Paul in 2021.
Who are ZOKO's investors?
ZOKO's investors include Callapina Capital, Xeed Ventures, Y Combinator, iSeed.
Where is ZOKO headquartered?
ZOKO is headquartered in Bengaluru, IN.