This article is a part of Poland Unpacked. Weekly intelligence for decision-makers
Lithuanian startup Holo has raised funding from a group of investors led by Market One Capital. The company is developing an AI-powered platform that helps small businesses plan and manage their marketing without hiring specialists or working with agencies. More than 20,000 businesses worldwide already use its technology.
Artificial intelligence is attracting enormous amounts of capital, but so far, most investment has focused on AI models, infrastructure and solutions for large enterprises. According to Michał Mroczkowski, partner at Market One Capital, the real revolution in the consumer market is only just beginning. The Polish fund has focused on this segment for years, and its investment in Lithuanian startup Holo fits that strategy.
"AI is changing how people search, shop and work, and transformations like these have always created opportunities for major consumer businesses. This time, however, the process is moving faster because billions of people are already online, and new products can reach customers worldwide from the day they launch. Holo is one of the first companies riding this wave. It gives sole proprietors and small businesses access to marketing tools they previously could not afford," says Michał Mroczkowski.
The Polish fund decided to back the Lithuanian company, leading a seed funding round in which Holo raised a total of EUR 5m. Other participants included Silicon Gardens, FirstPick, Leonis Capital, NGL and Tekton Ventures, as well as angel investors.
Earlier, at the beginning of its development, the Lithuanian startup had raised EUR 750,000 from FirstPick.
The new funding is intended to accelerate the company's development, particularly by expanding its marketing automation platform and acquiring more customers. Holo already serves more than 20,000 businesses in over 100 countries. It also plans to expand its team in Vilnius.
"AI is changing how people search, shop and work, and transformations like these have always created opportunities for major consumer businesses. This time, however, the process is moving faster."
How did Holo acquire its first customers?
As Aleksandras Urbanavičius, co-founder of Holo, points out, small business owners understand perfectly well how important marketing is. What they often lack is the time or money to manage it effectively.
"We reached customers primarily through Facebook and Instagram advertising because we know those channels well. We also made sure our advertising spending paid for itself and improved the product every week, based on what actually worked. That is how we reached USD 5m in annual recurring revenue (ARR) in 252 days, having raised less than EUR 1m from investors. Most of that growth, however, was financed from our own revenue," says Aleksandras Urbanavičius.
Small-business marketing moves closer to full automation
According to Aleksandras Urbanavičius, technological advances will allow small businesses, within a few years, to manage some of their marketing activities much like the world's biggest brands: following a clear strategy, continuously testing different approaches and making decisions based on results.
Holo representatives explain that getting started with the platform is straightforward. A business owner enters the company's website address, and the system analyzes its products or services, brand and existing customer communications. Based on this information and the company's business objectives, it prepares a marketing plan and recommends appropriate communication channels.
The platform also helps implement that plan. It creates advertisements, social media posts, emails and search engine optimization (SEO) content, while maintaining the company's established tone of voice. Under certain conditions, some of these activities could eventually be carried out automatically.
"The business owner receives a plan tailored to their company, which is continuously updated based on actual performance. This funding round allows us to take the next step. We are moving toward greater automation, so that owners only need to get involved when they want to," says Deividas Kovger, co-founder of Holo.
"We want to give small businesses their own marketing department, one that requires less and less attention from the owner while remaining under their control. That was our goal even before we brought investors on board. This funding round allows us to pursue it faster."
More than capital: Investor experience matters
How does Holo intend to stand out in a market already crowded with AI-powered tools?
"We compete with tools such as Canva, copywriting and social media scheduling applications, freelancers and agencies. These tools can help create or publish content, but the business owner still has to decide what to do and assess whether it worked. An agency can handle those decisions, but at a much higher cost.
"Holo starts with a plan, then creates and publishes content, and recommends further actions based on the results. We want to give small businesses their own marketing department, one that requires less and less attention from the owner while remaining under their control. That was our goal even before we brought investors on board. This funding round allows us to pursue it faster," says Aleksandras Urbanavičius.
He emphasizes that Holo's revenue had already allowed it to finance its development, so bringing in an investor was not a necessity at any cost. The additional capital is primarily intended to accelerate its business plans.
"What mattered to us was whom we would be working with. Market One Capital understands entrepreneurs from our region who want to build global businesses from day one. Having them on board also helps us attract experienced employees and business partners. It gives us a strong starting point for future funding rounds when the time comes," Holo's co-founder explains.
What convinced Market One Capital to invest? Above all, the team's experience.
"Before founding Holo, its creators worked in e-commerce marketing and helped scale startups. Generating content is now practically free. But reaching customers effectively and converting that attention into sales still requires experience," says Michał Mroczkowski.
Lithuania's startup ecosystem in a broader perspective
Expert's perspective
Lithuania builds its competitive edge through global startups, engineering and defense technology
The first wave of development, driven by fintech and rapidly growing global companies such as Vinted and Nord Security, the creator of NordVPN and Surfshark, delivered much more than individual business success stories. It produced a generation of executives and founders who build companies for international customers from the outset.
Importantly, Lithuanian companies expand internationally without necessarily moving their headquarters abroad. Only one in four Lithuanian scaleups has chosen to relocate – the lowest proportion in the region.
In Estonia, that figure is 50%, while in Latvia it reaches 70%. The experience gained by the first generation of entrepreneurs is now bearing fruit in new ventures. One example is nexos.ai, launched by the founders of Nord Security. Meanwhile, Cast AI joined Lithuania's unicorn club in early 2026.
The startup ecosystem is also remarkably young. The development of artificial intelligence is encouraging more people to establish companies immediately after completing their education, while many young professionals are choosing startups over corporations.
One of Lithuania's lesser-known strengths is its laser industry. Its history dates back to 1966, when physicists at Vilnius University built the country's first laser. Today, the sector comprises more than 60 companies that export up to 95% of their production, while the industry is growing by approximately 16% annually.
This industrial foundation is supporting companies such as Astrolight, which develops laser communication systems for the space and defense sectors. Lithuania can also point to the success of NanoAvionics in the space industry, while Atrandi Biosciences develops tools for life sciences and medicine.
Lithuania borders Belarus and Russia, through the Kaliningrad exclave. Resilience is not merely discussed here – it is actively built. Over the past two years, the number of companies operating in defense and developing dual-use technologies has grown, including Unmanned Defense Systems, which works on drone swarms, and Mainline.
The conviction that "if we don't do it ourselves, nobody will do it for us" is deeply rooted and reflected in the activities of Lithuanian entrepreneurs.
Challenges remain, however. Vilnius still struggles to attract specialists from abroad, while limited air and rail connections make it harder to establish the city as a regional technology hub.
Too few former employees of Vinted and Nord Security are also launching their own businesses, meaning the knowledge and experience accumulated at these companies are not yet being fully exploited.
AI changes where the fund looks, not its strategy
What does Market One Capital's investment strategy look like today?
"The fundamentals remain unchanged. We invest in startups across Europe at the earliest stages of development – pre-seed and seed. We are interested in online platforms built around network effects, consumer applications and the infrastructure supporting them.
"For 14 years, we have been looking for companies whose competitive advantage strengthens as the number of users and transactions grows. AI is changing where we look, not what we believe in," emphasizes Michał Mroczkowski.
Lithuania occupies an important place on the fund's investment map, although Market One Capital does not restrict its activities to the Baltic states.
"Vilnius attracts many talented specialists and startup founders who build companies with the global market in mind from day one. At the same time, we have also been investing regularly for years in Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Spain and the Netherlands," says Michał Mroczkowski.
Key Takeaways
- 1. Holo wants to give small businesses access to advanced marketing tools that were previously beyond their reach. Its AI-powered platform does more than generate content: it plans marketing activities, assists with publishing and analyzes their effectiveness. The ultimate goal is to automate an increasing share of these tasks while allowing business owners to retain control over their marketing.
- 2. The Lithuanian startup is scaling rapidly, largely financing its growth from its own revenue. According to the company, Holo reached USD 5m in annual recurring revenue (ARR) within 252 days, having previously raised less than EUR 1m from investors. More than 20,000 businesses in over 100 countries already use its platform.
- 3. Market One Capital is looking for startups whose competitive advantage grows alongside their user base and transaction volumes. The fund sees new opportunities in AI-powered consumer technologies but is not changing its underlying investment strategy. It remains focused on early-stage companies with teams capable of acquiring customers in global markets.