Wittington Ventures led the funding round for the firm, with participation from returning backers Golden Ventures, GreatPoint Ventures and RTP Global. Shakudo is also opening a new San Francisco headquarters. (The Logic)

Talking point: Businesses use Shakudo’s technology to adopt AI tools. The firm’s software runs within clients’ private clouds or on their in-house systems, letting their staff manage and roll out large language models, AI agents and coding assistants. Many of the tools are open source, helping users keep their AI costs down. Shakudo is targeting major industries like retail, manufacturing and real estate, but also highly regulated sectors like financial services and health care where properly handling data is crucial. Clients include Loblaw’s digital division; Wittington is the venture arm of the Weston family, which controls the grocery chain. Shakudo has raised US$17.8 million to date, per PitchBook data.