TRANSFORMING DIRECT PROCUREMENT WITH AI-POWERED DIGITAL BUYERS

Noam Shakuri and Or Feldman are on a mission to bring AI-powered robotic buyers to the world's largest industrial enterprises. Co-founders of the startup Evolinq.IO, they believe Israel's hi-tech future lies not only in cybersecurity but also in its integration with advanced manufacturing industries — the defense sector among them — to streamline operations and unlock new efficiencies through cutting-edge technology.
It all began about three years ago, when Shakuri witnessed a major supply chain crisis at one of the world's leading electronics manufacturers. "Everyone was in panic mode!" he recalls. "An entire cargo plane of equipment mistakenly landed in Israel. Someone at the company was supposed to cancel the order by email but never did so, and the shipment went through. It was a massive and costly mistake. Although the order was eventually canceled, the company took a significant loss. For a smaller business, a mistake like this could have been fatal."
The incident made Shakuri question how some of the world's most technologically advanced defense, electronics, aerospace and semiconductors companies still manage procurement like corner store with Excel sheets and emails. "They handle tens of thousands of purchase orders and work with thousands of suppliers, yet much of the work is still managed in emails and Excel, and most of their data is still entered manually into ERP systems — even at the cost of errors and production downtime."

Coming from the world of hi-tech, Shakuri and Feldman were used to automating anything manual. When they saw major enterprises handling half a million orders a year via spreadsheets, they realized there was a huge gap — and a huge opportunity.

From Unit 8200 to Autonomous Supply Chain Management
The two had met during their military service in Israel's NSA, Unit 8200, both graduates of its elite cybersecurity course. They had then parted ways. Feldman aquired a BA in Economics and Management from Tel Aviv University, then transitioned into software engineering and management roles at Deci AI (later acquired by NVIDIA) and ProDrops (gaming), before founding the startup Framezy AI.. Shakuri, whose degree is in Computer Science, worked as a software engineer and team leader in the cybersecurity startup IntSights, later acquired by Rapid7. He had engaged in AI and software development since he was a teen, winning first place in a Microsoft app development competition when he was 17.
When Shakuri and Feldman reconnected, they decided to join forces and created Evolinq.IO, with Shakuri as CEO and Feldman as CTO.

Turning Every Buyer into a Procurement Manager
Evolinq.IO deploys AI-powered virtual buyers (agents) that interact with suppliers, manage orders and update internal systems in any language or format, mimicking the behavior of a human buyer.
"Our AI agent is trained by observing human buyers and replicates their behavior," explains Feldman. "It communicates with suppliers via email just like a human being, handles documents, spreadsheets and free text, responds to queries, and channels all data into the organization's ERP system — without requiring direct integration, which ensures security. From the supplier's point of view, the experience remains unchanged. There are no adaptations required from working with a human counterpart."
EVOLINQ's agents autonomously handle up to 80 percent of procurement tasks, leaving only the most strategic decisions for human oversight. In this model, human buyers evolve into supervisors of robotic agents, guiding and managing operations rather than handling execution themselves.
Founded only two and a half years ago, EVOLINQ already serves some of the industry's biggest global players. It is headquartered in Tel Aviv and backed by several notable angel investors, among them RH Electronics, which was early in recognizing its potential. Evolinq.IO is a graduate of the 8200 EISP and Mamram Space Accelerator for pre-seed startups, and is supported by Drive TLV, a leading mobility and auto-tech accelerator.

The Advantage of AI Agents Over Humans
"The advantages of AI Agents are in three key areas: efficiency, accuracy and transparency," says Feldman. "There's a limit to the data that human buyers can process and they may overlook critical details. Our AI agent can handle thousands of items simultaneously, detect issues in real-time, and respond autonomously. In one instance, a client scaled up its production team tenfold, without hiring a single additional procurement employee."
The AI agent logs every interaction, ensures timely delivery, and equips managers with a centralized control dashboard spanning the entire supply chain. It also offers valuable insights into supplier performance, from pricing stability to operational flexibility, uncovering data buried in email inboxes.
When EVOLINQ agents are deployed system-wide, the benefits multiply. The platform provides a comprehensive view of the supply chain and assists procurement leaders in identifying and addressing critical gaps, fostering a strong synergy between AI automation and human expertise.

A Strong Fit for the Automotive Sector
"Our product is an ideal fit for automotive manufacturers, defense contractors, OEMs, electronics and retail — essentially any company that manages communication with hundreds of suppliers," says Shakuri.
Over the past year, the company has managed more than $500 million in procurement volume across more than 300,000 order lines, and is now raising its first funding round to fuel its next phase of growth.

The Vision
"We envision a future where entire supply chain departments in manufacturing companies operate through Evolinq.IO — with AI agents continuously communicating, validating data and ensuring seamless, efficient operations," says Shakuri. "AI is set to revolutionize manufacturing from end to end, with companies that fail to adopt it risk falling behind. Innovation in procurement is as vital as innovation in production."

"The potential for disruption in industrial tech is enormous," says Feldman. "It's not getting the same headlines as cybersecurity, but the time for transformation is now!"

"Manufacturing is a perfect fit for AI agents," sums up Shakuri. "Companies that embrace human-machine collaboration will scale faster and operate more efficiently. That's exactly what we're here to help them do."

Company website >>

In collaboration with EVOLINQ