Italian startup Always Friday has successfully secured €1.05 million in a new funding round to advance its AI-powered event planning platform. The investment, supported by Vento Ventures, P3Ventures, and several angel investors, will fuel the company's mission to automate the corporate event management industry. This capital infusion is set to accelerate the development of its technology and support its expansion plans across Europe.
Revolutionizing Event Management
The corporate event planning sector has long been characterized by fragmented, manual processes that are difficult to scale effectively. Planners often spend weeks coordinating with venues, managing suppliers, and handling contracts, leading to significant operational overhead. This traditional approach lacks the efficiency and structure required by modern enterprises looking to optimize their event procurement and organization.
Founded in 2024 by Gianluca Sordano, Daniele Viccaro, Antonio Restaino, and Lorenzo Balzani, Always Friday addresses these industry-wide inefficiencies. The company has developed an AI-native platform that automates the entire event planning workflow, from initial venue sourcing to final payments. This innovative system is designed to bring much-needed structure and scalability to a traditionally labor-intensive field.
AI-Powered Automation at its Core
At the heart of the platform are proprietary AI agents that handle the operational heavy lifting, automating up to 90 percent of manual tasks. These agents are capable of contacting venues, negotiating pricing and availability, and coordinating with suppliers from start to finish. This powerful automation reduces complex planning cycles that typically take weeks down to just a few hours.
Gianluca Sordano, CEO and co-founder, highlighted the platform's transformative potential for an industry still reliant on manual work. "AI helps us remove operational overhead while keeping full control over execution and quality," he explained. The technology empowers companies to streamline their processes without sacrificing the high standards required for successful corporate events.
Fueling Strategic Growth and Innovation
The new €1.05 million in capital will be strategically deployed to accelerate the company's growth trajectory and technological advancement. A primary focus will be on expanding the engineering team to further develop its sophisticated AI agents. This investment is critical for enhancing the platform's capabilities and maintaining a competitive edge in the market.
A significant portion of the funds is also allocated to strengthening the company's proprietary data infrastructure. This involves building out one of Italy's largest databases of venues, suppliers, pricing models, and event performance metrics. This data-centric approach is fundamental to making the system faster, more reliable, and more intelligent over time.
Always Friday has already demonstrated impressive market traction, with its revenue growing fivefold year-on-year. The company achieved a significant milestone in the first quarter of 2026 by matching its full-year revenue from 2025. This rapid growth is fueled by strong demand from enterprise and mid-market clients seeking to optimize their event operations.
A Vision for the Future
The company's long-term vision is to establish its platform as the essential infrastructure layer for how companies procure and manage events. This ambition is built on the dual pillars of comprehensive data and advanced automation. Management believes this combination creates a structural advantage in a market that has been slow to adopt new technology.
With a strong foundation in Italy, Always Friday is now setting its sights on broader European expansion. The new funding will be instrumental in this next phase of growth, allowing the company to scale its operations and supplier network. This strategic move aims to solidify its position as a leading innovator in the global event technology space.
This latest funding round marks a pivotal moment for Always Friday, validating its innovative solution for a complex industry. By harnessing the power of AI and data, the company is well-positioned to redefine the standards of corporate event planning. The investment not only accelerates its product development but also paves the way for its mission to deliver a scalable, automated, and efficient solution to businesses worldwide.