SOUS, the AI-powered growth platform for independent food and beverage businesses, covering the full journey from discovery to transaction and guest retention, today announced it has raised its Seed round with a total investment of €4 million in funding.
Founded by Devon Scoulelis and Thomas Scholte, and late-joining Co-Founder William Hurst as CTO, SOUS is building the digital growth infrastructure for independent restaurants, helping operators increase their visibility online, sell directly to customers and build stronger long-term relationships with their guests.
The round was led by seed + speed Ventures, with participation from existing investor PeakBridge along with āltitude, Gekko Capital and a group of experienced angel investors. The funding will support the expansion of SOUS’ product and engineering teams, further development of its AI-powered platform, and continued international expansion across Europe, starting with Germany.
AI Agents for Restaurant Growth:
SOUS is built as an end-to-end growth engine; helping restaurants get discovered, convert that discovery into direct sales, and build lasting relationships with their guests. Today, that full journey is broken. The restaurant industry is undergoing a major shift as customer discovery increasingly happens online – across search engines, maps, social platforms and now AI assistants. At the same time, restaurants often rely on fragmented technology tools and third-party platforms that capture valuable customer data and charge high commissions.
SOUS is building a new type of software designed to address this challenge: AI agents that work continuously behind the scenes to help restaurants grow.
These AI-driven systems help restaurants:
- improve discoverability across emerging AI platforms, search engines, and maps.
- drive traffic and convert it into direct orders and guest engagement
- automate marketing, brand presence and customer communication
Thomas Scholte, Co-Founder & CCO, SOUS, commented: “Running a restaurant means running a digital business. The local entrepreneur doesn’t have the budget for a CMO, CFO and CTO. We’re building an AI agent that takes over part of that work, so the local pizzeria has the same firepower and tools as large players like Domino’s with their many employees and budget.”
Unlocking New Revenue Streams for Restaurants:
Through its platform, restaurants can improve digital discovery, sell directly to customers online, and activate new sales channels such as takeaway, retail products, experiences and subscriptions. Eindhoven restaurant El Puente grew online sales from €30,000 to €177,000 since implementing SOUS, with zero additional marketing spend, while cutting operational costs in half.
Crucially, the platform enables restaurants to retain ownership of their customer data, rather than passing it to third-party marketplaces. SOUS also integrates with the tools restaurants already use – including Zenchef, one of Europe’s leading reservation systems – positioning it as the growth layer of the existing restaurant technology stack. SOUS is on track to unlock over €200 million in new transaction volume for merchants across the EU and selected international markets.
Strategic Partnerships Accelerating Adoption:
SOUS is integrating with key players across the restaurant technology ecosystem to accelerate adoption of its platform. Among them is Zenchef, one of Europe’s leading restaurant reservation systems. Through this collaboration, restaurants using Zenchef will be able to access SOUS tools designed to increase visibility and drive additional revenue.
Through this partnership, SOUS drives more guests to restaurant websites and booking pages through improved search and AI visibility; increasing the volume of reservations flowing through Zenchef and helping restaurants convert more of that traffic into confirmed bookings. The result is a win across the full value chain: restaurants fill more covers, guests discover better options, and platforms like Zenchef see higher booking volumes through their existing infrastructure. By integrating with the software restaurants already use, SOUS aims to become the growth layer of the restaurant technology stack.
Expansion Across Germany and Europe:
With the €4 million funding round, SOUS plans to expand its product, AI development and commercial teams while strengthening its presence in European markets. Germany represents the company’s first major expansion focus, with the team building a growing network of restaurant partners and technology integrations. The company believes the opportunity extends far beyond a single market, as restaurants across Europe face similar challenges in managing digital discovery, customer engagement and revenue growth.
Devon Scoulelis, Co-Founder & CEO, SOUS, says: “We believe we are only at the beginning of a massive shift in how restaurants operate. Restaurants are entering an era where AI will actively work on their behalf, managing their visibility, bringing guests through the door and helping them grow revenue. Our goal is to build the digital growth engine every restaurant needs to take advantage of this shift.”
Alexander Kölpin, Managing Partner at seed + speed Ventures, said: “More and more restaurants are generating revenue not just from table service, but increasingly through additional products and services. SOUS combines enhanced visibility across digital platforms, long-term customer loyalty, and additional direct business in a single solution. This way, the company helps restaurants become less dependent on third-party platforms and the limitations of their stationary business. SOUS opens up new revenue streams for restaurants and thus has the potential to become the leading growth platform for restaurants in Europe.”
