AI-powered coding tools are now mainstream, but one question keeps haunting tech leaders: Is AI truly improving productivity, or just adding hype? Israeli startup Milestone believes it has the answer. The company just secured $10 million in seed funding to help businesses measure the real return on investment (ROI) from their generative AI tools.
Turning AI Data Into Measurable Results
Milestone’s platform goes beyond tracking AI usage; it directly connects how engineers use generative AI tools with key development metrics like code quality, speed, and bug frequency. The goal is simple: make AI’s contribution to software engineering visible and quantifiable.
To do this, Milestone analyzes four main data pillars: codebases, project management systems, team structures, and AI coding tools. Together, these form what CEO and co-founder Liad Elidan calls a “GenAI data lake.” With this insight, engineering leaders can pinpoint which teams are effectively leveraging AI and where issues arise.
This data-driven approach gives managers confidence to make informed decisions, such as whether AI-generated code is introducing bugs or helping teams ship faster. “We don’t have a single customer who said GenAI doesn’t help,” Elidan told TechCrunch. “In fact, most want to expand their AI toolset after using Milestone.”
Also Read: YC-backed AI startups that raised funding in 2025: The Startups Defining the Next Wave
A Founding Story That Crossed Borders
Milestone’s success is as unconventional as its product. Before raising funds, Elidan and CTO Professor Stephen Barrett had never met in person. The two first connected years earlier at Trinity College Dublin, where Barrett, now a computer science professor, taught Elidan. Despite the distance—Barrett is based in Ireland while Milestone operates out of Israel, their shared vision for improving engineering efficiency kept them collaborating.
Their timing couldn’t have been better. As tools like GitHub Copilot, now boasting over 20 million users, reshape software development, Milestone offers enterprises the missing link: clarity on how much value these tools actually deliver.
Backed by Big Names in Tech
Milestone’s $10 million seed round was led by Heavybit and Hanaco Ventures, with participation from Atlassian Ventures and an impressive lineup of angel investors. These include GitHub cofounder Tom Preston-Werner, former AT&T CEO John Donovan, Accenture’s tech advisor Paul Daugherty, and Datadog’s ex-president Amit Agrawal.
The startup has already partnered with major vendors like GitHub, Atlassian, Augment Code, Qodo, and Continue, giving it a front-row seat to the rapidly evolving AI landscape.
Focused on Enterprise, Not Expansion
While many startups chase growth in every direction, Milestone is staying disciplined. It has deliberately turned down smaller clients to remain focused on the enterprise market. According to Elidan, this focus helps the team build deep, robust solutions rather than spreading thin.
Even as AI transforms industries beyond software, Milestone isn’t rushing to expand into marketing or sales analytics. “Focus is key,” Elidan emphasized. “You can’t measure everything—so measure what matters.”
With its latest funding and growing roster of enterprise clients like Kayak, Monday.com, and Sapiens, Milestone is setting a new standard for how businesses evaluate the real impact of AI, and proving that when done right, AI can rhyme with ROI.
