By Dustin Stone, RTN staff writer - 8.26.2025
Loman AI, an Austin-based startup focused on automating restaurant phone calls, has raised $3.5 million in a seed round led by Next Coast Ventures with participation from TenOneTen Ventures and Antler. Founded in 2024, the company has quickly grown from a local experiment into a national platform handling millions of calls and processing tens of millions of dollars in restaurant orders. The new funding will be used to expand the team, deepen integrations with point-of-sale and reservation systems, and improve the speed and accuracy of its conversational AI.
The problem Loman is tackling is familiar to anyone who has worked in a restaurant. Despite the rise of online ordering, the phone remains the main sales channel for a large portion of the $1 trillion U.S. restaurant industry. Staff often struggle to juggle in-person service with ringing phones, leading to missed calls, lost revenue, and frustrated customers. Loman’s pitch is that its AI phone agent can answer every call, take orders, handle reservations and guest questions, and integrate directly into restaurant systems so staff can stay focused on diners. Early adopters report up to 22 percent higher revenue by recapturing missed calls and generating upsells, while reducing labor costs by as much as 17 percent.
Investors say that the appeal lies in the practical impact. “In a massive industry with real pain points, Loman is proving it can deliver AI that works in the trenches, not just in demos,” said Michael Maloney of Next Coast Ventures. TenOneTen’s Eric Pakravan pointed to the timing, arguing that voice AI is finally accurate and seamless enough to fit into daily operations after years of false starts.
The competitive landscape for voice AI in restaurants is evolving quickly. Companies like ConverseNow, Kea, and SoundHound AI have all pushed into automated ordering, often with a focus on drive-thru or phone channels. Some larger restaurant technology providers are also experimenting with their own AI voice modules as add-ons to ordering platforms. What differentiates Loman, according to both the company and its backers, is an emphasis on integration and usability. Rather than positioning as a one-off tool, Loman markets itself as a system that plugs into existing POS and reservation infrastructure with minimal friction. That matters in an industry where operators are wary of bolt-on solutions that create more complexity.
Still, the challenges ahead are considerable. Restaurant technology is notoriously fragmented, and AI phone systems must handle diverse menus, regional accents, and high-stakes service interactions without mistakes that frustrate guests. Accuracy and reliability will ultimately determine whether the platform can move from pilot projects into large-scale enterprise adoption. Loman has so far gained particular traction in pizza, a segment with high phone order volume, but it will need to prove it can scale effectively across formats and cuisines.
The company is also entering a market that has grown crowded as labor shortages push operators to look for automation. Differentiation may depend less on the novelty of AI and more on the quality of integrations and the speed at which the company can evolve its product to meet operator feedback. As founder and CEO Christian Wiens put it, “Voice is still the front door for so many restaurants. When an operator turns on Loman, the phone becomes an asset again.”
For now, the startup has momentum on its side. By pairing its fundraising with a record of tangible outcomes in the field, it is positioning itself as part of the next wave of applied AI in foodservice: less about demos and more about day-to-day operational relief. The next twelve to eighteen months will show whether that traction translates into a defensible position in an increasingly crowded category.
