Lauren Kolodny Invests in AI to Automate Estate Settlement Processes

Lauren Kolodny, a partner at Acrew Capital, has always believed in technology’s potential to democratize financial services. Back in 2016, she made an early and pivotal investment in Chime, the neobank that is now worth $14.5 billion. Kolodny is continuing her trend of backing startups that provide accessible solutions for everyday people. Her latest investment is in Alix, a startup focused on using AI to streamline the estate settlement process. The founder of Alix, Alexandra Mysoor, was inspired to create the platform after spending 900 hours over 18 months helping a friend handle the estate of her deceased mother. The process involved tedious tasks such as contacting banks, locating 401Ks, and transferring assets, all of which Mysoor found to be inefficient and outdated. The AI-powered solution Alix offers automates much of this process, from scanning and extracting data from documents to completing forms and liaising with financial institutions. Kolodny sees Alix as a breakthrough service in a market that often burdens heirs with expensive, time-consuming, and confusing tasks during a time of grief. As trillions of dollars are expected to transfer to younger generations over the next two decades, Kolodny believes AI will help solve this messy problem by making estate settlement services more accessible to all. Alix’s fee structure is based on 1% of an estate’s value, with costs ranging between $9,000 and $12,000 for smaller estates under $1 million.