Beluga

Based in San Francisco, California, Beluga develops a fully managed, artificial intelligence-driven influencer marketing platform designed to help enterprise and mid-market brands execute creator campaigns at scale. The business-to-business software automates the comprehensive end-to-end process of influencer discovery, outreach, contract negotiation, and conversion tracking to provide the measurable return on investment typically associated with traditional performance advertising. By positioning creator marketing as a direct-response channel rather than strictly a brand-awareness tool, the platform primarily serves direct-to-consumer brands, consumer mobile applications, e-commerce companies, and dedicated performance marketing teams. Backed by early-stage investor Y Combinator, the startup currently operates with a core team of three employees and has secured $500,000 in standard accelerator funding to support its ongoing software development and commercial expansion. Beluga was officially founded in 2024 by technology entrepreneurs Jack Swisher and Fernando Young.