Candor

We help companies win government funding with AI

W25

Active

artificial-intelligence

govtech

San Francisco

https://www.usecandor.ai

We help companies win government funding with AI

Candor helps defense, energy, and biotech startups win tens of billions of dollars in US government funding. Our AI software auto-drafts proposals and ensures full compliance. When we met at Stanford 4 years ago, it was rare for startups to work with the US Government. In the years that we’ve been involved in the burgeoning Defense Tech ecosystem, a lot has changed. Silicon Valley and the US Government are closer than they’ve been in decades. As fellows in Stanford’s Center for National Security Innovation, we’ve had the privilege of speaking with dozens of government officials who have come to Silicon Valley looking to fund and scale startups solving their most urgent problems. However, we’ve seen firsthand the struggles these startups face in securing gov funding. Marcus, having spoken with dozens of defense startups in his time helping lead the Stanford Defense Tech Club and trying to set up a national security startup accelerator has seen this especially. That’s why we’re making it easier to find and apply for opportunities, taking the application process from weeks to days. We’re only going to see more cooperation in the coming years. With that, there will be increasingly more funding going towards companies in defense, energy, biotech, quantum, etc. Candor lets you unlock that funding potential.

Candor

Founded:2025

Team Size:2

Status:

Active

Location:San Francisco

Group Partner:Gustaf Alstromer

Active Founders

Ethne Laude, Founder

Co-founder and CTO at Candor. Previously interned as a quant trader at Morgan Stanley building low-latency trading systems and as a research scholar at the Space Force. Studied CS systems and Math at Stanford, researching compiling sparse tensor applications to domain-specific hardware. Worked on building a DoD PEO Directory as a National Security Innovation Scholar.

Ethne Laude

Candor

Marcus Zimmerman, Founder

CEO of Candor. Prev & Stanford. Helped run Stanford's DEFCON Technology and National Security Network. Worked on a Defense incubator as a National Security Innovation Fellow. Product/Growth at an ex-YC Startup. Angel Investor in various startups, particularly Defense & GovTech

Marcus Zimmerman

Candor

Company Launches

Candor - Win Government Funding With AI

See original launch post ›

Announcing Candor: Win Funding for Your Startup from the US Government with AI

Four years ago, startups barely worked with the U.S. government. Today, the ecosystem is shifting—fast. Now, the government looks to Silicon Valley and startups to fix its biggest problems.

Tens of billions in non-dilutive funding are available for startups through SBIRs, STTRs, and other federal programs, especially in Defense, BioTech, Aerospace, and Energy. However, most founders either don’t know about them or can’t afford the time and effort required to apply.

That’s why we built Candor— an AI search and application drafting platform that takes the application process from weeks to days while ensuring full compliance.

What Candor Does

AI-Powered Search – No more scrolling through SAM.gov, Grants.gov, or DSIP to see if your startup can access government funding. Candor automatically matches your company with the most relevant funding opportunities.

AI Proposal Drafting – Generate 80% of your proposal by simply uploading your company’s past proposals, technical documents, and slide decks.

Compliance Checks & AI Red Team Review – Never get disqualified on a technicality. Candor’s AI evaluates your application against agency-specific formatting and evaluation criteria.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BuB3fjhy9Jo

Why This Matters

Winning can unlock $2M+ in government funding(per win), but today:

Startups miss out because finding opportunities is painful and opaque
Most founders don’t have time to write long technical proposals that can take a month
Expensive consultants charge $10K+ per application with no guarantees.

Why We’re Building This

Marcus helped lead Stanford’s DEFCON Tech and National Security Network. He also worked as a fellow at Stanford’s Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation, where he worked on building a campus accelerator for startups that were building in American Dynamism. He saw enough value in helping the massively growing community of startups wanting to access the US gov that he dropped out with 2 quarters left. In the past, he did Growth/Product at an ex-YC Startup.

Ethne did CS & Math at Stanford before dropping out. As a fellow at Stanford’s Gordian Knot Center for National Security, she interviewed dozens of government/defense officials and worked on a Department of Defense PEO Directory. She spent past summers Quant Trading at Morgan Stanley, interning at the Space Force, and doing compilers research.

The Ask

If you’re a startup building something that is considered technically innovative, you’re probably eligible for government funding. Talk to us, and we’d love to help.
If you’re a consultant or grant writer in the space, we have built a workspace meant specifically for you guys. We want to make it so you spend less time writing and more time on everything else— all without sacrificing win rates.

Reach out to us at founders@usecandor.ai

YC Sign Photo