Marissa Mayer, the former CEO of Yahoo, has closed her startup Sunshine to establish a new venture named Dazzle, which aims to develop advanced AI personal assistants. The company has successfully secured $8 million in seed funding, achieving a valuation of $35 million. This investment round was led by Kirsten Green of Forerunner Ventures, with additional participation from notable investors such as Kleiner Perkins and Greycroft.
Since its inception in 2018 as Lumi Labs, Sunshine struggled to gain market traction with its products, including the contact management app "Sunshine Contacts." Privacy concerns were raised about the app's data practices, which contributed to its challenges. By 2024, Sunshine attempted to expand its offerings but faced criticism for their effectiveness.
Mayer indicated that the Sunshine team began conceptualizing Dazzle last summer, expressing enthusiasm for the new direction. She believes Dazzle has the potential to make a more significant impact in the consumer AI space, which is poised for growth as consumer-facing applications finally emerge after a period of enterprise-focused advancements.