fonio

fonio is an AI communication platform for small and medium-sized businesses, founded in 2024 and headquartered in Vienna. Its core product is an AI phone assistant that answers calls around the clock, books appointments, qualifies leads and handles routine questions. The system automates more than 2m calls a month and is used by over 9,500 customers across nine markets. The company is also building what it describes as the first fully automated CRM system in the world.

The technical work spans conversational AI and voice, telephony and call automation, natural language processing, appointment-scheduling automation, lead qualification and CRM systems. The team numbers about 50 people, who describe themselves as builders. Many are former founders or have scaled products at companies such as Canva; the CTO began writing software at the age of 14, and the CEO sold a previous ad-tech startup in 2024.

Internally, the company operates with few meetings, direct feedback and an emphasis on ownership and fast shipping. Its stated ambition is to automate business communication end to end, from the first inbound call through to the customer record.