TrashLab Raises $12M Growth Round Led by Ventana for AI Waste Software

TrashLab, a San Francisco-based software company building what it calls the AI-native operating system for waste haulers, has raised a $12 million growth round led by early-growth equity firm Ventana. The company did not disclose a valuation.

Existing investors Bienville Capital, Harlem Capital and CreativeCo also participated. TrashLab did not disclose its total funding to date.

One System for Every Line of Hauling

Founded in 2022 by CEO Neil Chaudhary and CTO John Tan, TrashLab combines CRM, dispatch, routing, billing, payments and reporting in one platform. It serves haulers across roll-off, residential, commercial and septic lines of business, aiming to replace the patchwork of older tools many operators still run.

"Haulers have been forced to choose between antiquated tools and platforms that can't handle more than one line of business," Chaudhary said. He added that the company built TrashLab to eliminate those silos and give haulers visibility into their operations, margins and profitability, and that customers see returns from fuel savings, leaner back offices and faster collections within weeks of going live.

Haul-E Takes the Calls

TrashLab's AI order-taking agent, Haul-E, answers inbound calls and captures after-hours orders. Nearly 80% of customers use it, and Chaudhary described it as the first of many agents the company plans to build into the platform.

TrashLab says it serves hundreds of haulers across more than 40 states in the U.S. and Canada, has managed more than 5 million tons of material since launch, and has grown annual contract value more than 7x since 2024. Brad Uribe, owner of Uribe Refuse, said TrashLab completely transformed his business. Another customer, First State Waste, said it has grown its fleet 3x since going live while keeping the same lean back-office team.

Ventana's Case for Waste Software

"It's the fastest-growing platform we've seen in an industry that has been underserved by software for decades," said Vinay Kumar, co-founder and partner at Ventana.

Kumar called waste an essential, demanding industry that never gets a day off, and said TrashLab gives haulers one AI-native system across their whole business. Venture Daily Digest also reported the round, listing Ventana as lead alongside Bienville Capital, Harlem Capital and CreativeCo.

Why It Matters

Waste hauling is essential infrastructure that has run for years on phone calls, paper and disconnected systems. That makes it fertile ground for vertical software, and TrashLab is pitching the full stack rather than a single tool.

The more interesting piece is Haul-E. With most customers already letting an AI agent answer the phone and book orders, TrashLab is testing whether agents can handle front-office work in an industry where a missed call is a missed job. If that holds, more of the back office could follow.

The growth numbers give the round its logic: contract value up more than 7x since 2024 and customers in more than 40 states across the U.S. and Canada. A growth round from an early-growth equity firm, rather than a lettered venture round, signals a company being financed on traction.

Source

Business Wire — TrashLab Raises $12M to Scale the AI-Native Operating System for Waste Haulers