Find Your Grind, a Los Angeles-based career exploration startup, has raised $5 million in Series A funding. The round was led by Echo Investment Capital with participation from Newport Beach family office Gross Labs. This latest raise brings the company’s total funding to $8 million and will support the expansion of its identity-first platform for Gen Z students.
Evolving Career Landscape
The funding comes as automation and technological change reshape the labor market and weaken many traditional career paths. Global research suggests that tens of millions of existing jobs could disappear by 2030, creating uncertainty for young people entering the workforce. Many students now leave school without a clear sense of who they are, what they want, or how to navigate life after graduation.
Origins of Find Your Grind
Find Your Grind was founded by entrepreneur and former Goldfinger drummer Nick Gross after his own unconventional path through the music industry. The concept grew from sessions in his Los Angeles recording studio, where he invited students to see how creative careers work in practice. Those experiences exposed a sharp gap between classroom guidance and real world opportunities, pushing Gross to build a platform focused on identity and lifestyle.
Identity First Career Exploration
Instead of starting with job titles, Find Your Grind begins with self-discovery and personal context. Students complete a Lifestyle Assessment that surfaces strengths, values, and preferred ways of living, then group them into broad pathways such as entertainer, creator, or humanitarian. The platform then introduces career options rarely highlighted in schools, including roles in the creator economy, esports, media technology, content production, and experience design.
Technology, Coaching, and Mentorship
The product combines interactive video, AI-assisted reflection tools, and a curriculum built around self-awareness, career awareness, social awareness, and action awareness. An AI-powered reflective coach encourages students to deepen their answers and convert insights into practical next steps. High-profile mentors such as Tony Hawk, Tony Hoffman, and will.i.am sharing their stories through video content, giving students concrete examples of non-traditional careers.
Traction and Student Impact
To date, Find Your Grind has served about 100,000 students across the United States through its digital platform and district partnerships. The company reports strong engagement from Gen Z learners who are seeking paths that match both their values and lifestyle preferences. By prioritizing emotional intelligence, identity formation, and real-world relevance, the platform aims to make students more future-ready than traditional guidance models.
Series A Funding and Growth Plans
The new capital will be used to expand Find Your Grind’s reach from hundreds of thousands of students to well over a million. Investment will enhance the platform’s interactive video library, deepen its AI-driven coaching tools, and strengthen analytics that help educators understand student growth. The company also plans to extend workforce initiatives such as its program in Oklahoma City, which connects students with local employers that fit their lifestyle profiles.
Positioning in the EdTech Market
This Series A round highlights growing investor interest in personalized, lifestyle-centric approaches to career readiness within EdTech. While many competitors emphasize skills training or direct job matching, Find Your Grind differentiates itself by making identity and exploration the foundation of career planning. That strategy aligns with Gen Z’s focus on meaning, autonomy, and values alignment rather than purely financial metrics.
With fresh funding, recognizable mentors, and an AI-enabled platform, Find Your Grind is positioning itself as a visible player in the next wave of career guidance. The company’s growth will test whether an identity-first model can scale as job categories fragment and new roles emerge. If it succeeds, its approach could reshape how schools and communities prepare young people for work in the 2030s and beyond.