Glass
Glass operates G-Commerce, an AI-powered government procurement marketplace serving 125+ federal, state, local, and education agencies in the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Mexico, as one of eight GSA Commercial Platforms Program awardees.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Glass does
Glass (legally Social Glass, Inc.) is a San Francisco-based GovTech company founded in 2017 by Paola Santana that operates G-Commerce, an AI-powered digital marketplace purpose-built for government procurement. The platform enables federal, state, and local government agencies — as well as public schools and municipalities across the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Mexico — to discover, purchase, and pay for goods and services from verified vendors with built-in compliance, role-based approval workflows, and socio-economic tracking (AbilityOne, Veteran-Owned, Women-Owned, Black-Owned, Made in America). The platform is one of only eight awarded under the GSA Commercial Platforms Program alongside Amazon Business, Grainger, and Office Depot, has received Exceptional ratings from GSA for two consecutive contract years, and serves 125+ agencies with 40,976+ buyers, 348 suppliers, and $10M+ in cumulative GMV. Technology is built on FedRAMP-certified Google Cloud infrastructure with Stripe handling PCI-compliant payments, and integrates natural language contract querying, AI-powered recommendation, and predictive dashboards.
Glass generates revenue through three streams: (i) marketplace commissions on transactions facilitated through G-Commerce, (ii) recurring licensing/subscription fees from dedicated government portal implementations (e.g., Santa Monica, South San Francisco, Puerto Rico's Mercadito, Sahuayo, Mission Preparatory School), and (iii) transaction fees via Glass Pay, a public-sector payment product developed in partnership with Mastercard through the Start Path Corporate Solutions program. Distribution combines direct enterprise field sales to federal, state, county, and municipal buyers with channel partnerships through the GSA program, Sourcewell cooperative purchasing, and Mastercard's global ecosystem. The company's GTM is reinforced by an advisory board including former GSA leadership and the California State Treasurer, and its contracting footprint spans North America with active international expansion led by Mastercard.
Glass has raised approximately $4.45M in disclosed funding across a 2020 Alchemist vehicle, a 2023 seed led by KittyHawk and New Age Capital, and a Google for Startups Latino Founders Fund grant, with Google as both investor and infrastructure partner. The company employs fewer than 20 named individuals, is headquartered at Salesforce Tower in San Francisco, and has been recognized by GovCIO Outlook (Top 10 e-Governance, 2019), The Silicon Review (50 Best Companies to Watch, 2019), and Mastercard (Start Path, 2026).
Glass firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Glass
- Legal name
- Social Glass, Inc.
- Website
- https://gcommerce.glass
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Glass operates G-Commerce, an AI-powered government procurement marketplace serving 125+ federal, state, local, and education agencies in the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Mexico, as one of eight GSA Commercial Platforms Program awardees.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Glass industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Government E-Procurement Software
- akta.pro primary industry
- Public Communications, Transparency & Open Government (BPAIAAAH)
Keywords
Where Glass is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Glass business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Operations
Revenue model
- Marketplace Transaction Fees: G-Commerce facilitates government purchases from verified vendors on its platform, generating revenue through transaction fees or commissions on purchases made through the marketplace. The platform supports $10 million in public purchasing and serves agencies with government credit card transactions.
- Government Contract Licensing: Glass secures contracts under the GSA Commercial Platforms Program enabling it to serve federal agencies nationwide. State and local governments also enter platform agreements, likely on a subscription or licensing basis for dedicated e-commerce portals (e.g., City of Santa Monica, South San Francisco, Puerto Rico's Mercadito, Sahuayo).
- Payment Processing (Glass Pay): Integrated payment processing solution for public sector finance management, developed in partnership with Mastercard through the Start Path program, targeting the $600 billion U.S. and $4.4 trillion global public finance market.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels8 records
Glass product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Glass operates G-Commerce, an AI-powered digital marketplace platform built exclusively for government procurement. It connects verified vendors with federal, state, county, municipal, and K-12 government buyers, enabling compliant purchasing with integrated socio-economic tracking, automated approval workflows, and real-time analytics. The platform is offered as a GSA Commercial Platforms Program listing for federal agencies and as dedicated portal deployments (Mercadito, Santa Monica, etc.) for state and local governments, with Glass Pay providing integrated public-sector payment processing.
Product overview
Glass operates G-Commerce, an AI-powered government e-commerce platform ecosystem. The core platform G-Commerce enables federal, state, and local government agencies to purchase products and services through a verified vendor marketplace with compliance, socio-economic tracking, and real-time analytics. Key products include: G-Commerce AI Solutions Marketplace (AI procurement marketplace with natural language querying and recommendations), Glass Pay (payment processing), and regional implementations like Mercadito (Puerto Rico) and Sahuayo (Mexico). Supporting modules include Government Procurement Concierge (24/7 support), Vendor Verification, Visual Dashboards, Intelligent Search, and Government Vendor Directory. The company was selected for Mastercard's Start Path Corporate Solutions program to scale public sector payment infrastructure.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Glass Pay: AI-powered payment processing platform for government transactions
- Mercadito
- G-Commerce AI Solutions Marketplace
Products and services
- G-Commerce AI-powered digital marketplace for government procurement that enables federal, state, and local agencies to purchase products and services from verified vendors with built-in compliance, socio-economic tracking, real-time analytics, and automated approval workflows; available via the GSA Commercial Platforms Program and as dedicated government portal deployments.
- G-Commerce AI Solutions Marketplace Cooperative purchasing marketplace enabling government agencies to procure AI solutions (enterprise AI, cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, data analytics) through pre-awarded Sourcewell contracts, featuring natural language contract querying and an AI-powered recommendation finder.
- Glass Pay AI-powered payment processing solution for the public sector that provides efficient, transparent digital payment infrastructure for governments, built in partnership with Mastercard through the Start Path Corporate Solutions program.
Quantifiable outcome
- Over $10 million in public purchasing facilitated through GSA Commercial Platforms Program
- +7 more outcomes
Companies that use Glass
Customer profileNamed customers10 records
Segments7 records
Ideal customer profiles6 records
Glass technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration7 records
AI capability9 records
Feature9 records
Glass partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.
- Mastercard (Start Path Corporate Solutions)flagshipGlass was accepted into Mastercard Start Path's inaugural Corporate Solutions program, gaining access to Mastercard's global ecosystem of banks, merchants, and technology partners to scale its AI-powered procurement and payment infrastructure for governments worldwide. The partnership targets the $600 billion U.S. and $4.4 trillion global public finance market, with CEO Paola Santana stating it will accelerate Glass's mission to modernize public sector procurement and bring transparency and efficiency to government spending.
- SourcewellcoreGlass and Sourcewell launched the G-Commerce AI Solutions Marketplace pilot — the first cooperative purchasing marketplace enabling government agencies to procure AI solutions through pre-awarded contracts with built-in compliance. The platform uses AI-powered discovery and decision-making tools, natural language contract querying, and recommendation finders for AI solutions across enterprise AI, cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, and data analytics. Now available for pilot agency participation with continued expansion planned.
- City of South San Francisco, CaliforniacoreGlass officially launched the City of South San Francisco's Government E-Commerce Platform, a procurement solution developed in partnership with the city's Economic & Community Development Department. The platform aims to modernize procurement, promote economic inclusion, and expand opportunities for local businesses, with early adoption by 11 businesses and over 376 products available. Described as the first such platform for a Silicon Valley city.
- Municipality of Sahuayo, Michoacán, MexicocoreThe Municipality of Sahuayo launched its Digital Public Procurement One-Stop Shop powered by G-Commerce — the first municipality in Michoacán and one of the first in Latin America to implement a fully digital procurement system. The platform involves 45+ municipal departments, digitalized over 700 purchase requests within two months, with plans to onboard 60+ local suppliers including women-led enterprises.
- Mission Preparatory SchoolcoreMission Preparatory School and Glass launched the first e-commerce procurement portal purpose-built for K-12 public education, powered by G-Commerce. The school processes over $3.8 million in annual procurement through the platform, achieving 20% increase in budget savings. Glass provides ongoing one-on-one onsite support, inventory management assistance, and co-creates solutions with the school community.
- City of Santa Monica, CaliforniacoreFull integration of G-Commerce e-commerce platform for City of Santa Monica's procurement needs, supporting approximately $3 million in annual transactions across 10+ city departments. Platform features automated workflows, real-time analytics, and Government Procurement Concierge support achieving 99% resolution rate on 400+ tickets. Platform rolled out internally in May 2024 with full integration announced June 2025.
- Government of Puerto Rico (ASG)coreThe Government of Puerto Rico, in collaboration with Glass, launched 'Mercadito' — the first government e-commerce platform in Latin America. The platform integrates G-Commerce technology into Puerto Rico's procurement infrastructure, offering access to over 25,000 products and services with pre-negotiated terms. The joint achievement reflects the territory's initiative to modernize services, increase competition in contracting, and support local businesses.
- Town of Purcellville, VirginiaminorThe Town of Purcellville partnered with Glass to create a digital shopping platform for local businesses to digitize products and access government purchasing opportunities. Town council authorized $10,000 to launch the portal, with 12 businesses signed up at launch. Goal is to provide Purcellville's 300+ businesses with global reach through e-commerce.
- U.S. General Services Administration (GSA)flagshipGlass operates G-Commerce within the GSA Commercial Platforms Program, one of only eight awarded platforms alongside Amazon Business, Grainger, and Office Depot. The company received Exceptional ratings from GSA for two consecutive contract years, with 88% of federal platform spend flowing to small businesses. The GSA award enables direct procurement access for federal agencies nationwide.
- Google (Cloud Infrastructure)coreGlass uses Google Cloud infrastructure for its platform, which is FedRAMP certified. G-Commerce aligns with the NIST Cybersecurity Framework through its integrations with Google Cloud. Google is also a financial backer/investor in Glass.
- Stripe (Payment Processing)corePayment processing is handled by Stripe, a PCI-compliant provider certified as PCI Level 1 Service Provider. All credit card transactions are conducted within the G-Commerce platform without redirection to external websites, with fully encrypted payment information transmission.
- Open Contracting PartnershipminorGlass is listed alongside Open Contracting Partnership as a citation/partner, both focused on procurement transparency. Gerardo Mateo represented Glass at the WTO 2024 Public Forum discussing transparency and data accessibility for small businesses in public procurement.
Scale indicators15 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Glass competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Amazon Business: Amazon Business is one of Glass's fellow eight platforms awarded under the GSA Commercial Platforms Program, competing directly for federal micro-purchase volume with a vastly larger catalog and logistics network.
- Grainger: Grainger is another GSA Commercial Platforms Program awardee and competes with G-Commerce for federal and industrial MRO procurement, with deeper catalog breadth and an established B2G salesforce.
- Office Depot: Office Depot is also a GSA Commercial Platforms Program awardee, overlapping directly with G-Commerce in office supplies and small-business sourcing for federal agencies.
- Procurated: Procurated is a government procurement vendor ratings and marketplace platform that overlaps with G-Commerce's mission of helping government buyers discover and evaluate vendors, particularly for socio-economically diverse suppliers.
- Bonfire Interactive: Bonfire is a public-sector e-procurement platform that competes with G-Commerce in government sourcing, RFP management, and vendor evaluation, with stronger penetration in mid-sized municipalities.
Broad incumbents
- Coupa Software: Coupa is a broad-spend management and B2B procurement incumbent whose source-to-pay suite overlaps with G-Commerce's procurement functionality at the larger-contract end of government spending.
- Jaggaer: Jaggaer is a larger procurement platform incumbent offering source-to-pay, supplier management, and contract lifecycle tools that compete with G-Commerce for higher-value government procurement deals.
- OpenGov: OpenGov is a government technology platform serving budgeting, procurement, and transparency workflows in U.S. state and local governments, overlapping with G-Commerce's state-and-local procurement modernization mission.
- Deltek (GovWin): Deltek's GovWin provides government contracting intelligence and procurement data used by vendors and agencies, sitting adjacent to G-Commerce's vendor discovery and compliance workflows.
Others
- Stripe: Stripe is Glass's payment-processing infrastructure partner (PCI Level 1) and a peer in public-sector payment enablement — Glass Pay represents Glass's expansion into territory that Stripe already serves for government.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Glass social profiles
Digital presenceGlass compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Glass financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Glass leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Glass subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Glass funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds8 records
Investors10 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Glass M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Glass
What does Glass do?
Glass operates G-Commerce, an AI-powered digital marketplace platform built exclusively for government procurement. It connects verified vendors with federal, state, county, municipal, and K-12 government buyers, enabling compliant purchasing with integrated socio-economic tracking, automated approval workflows, and real-time analytics. The platform is offered as a GSA Commercial Platforms Program listing for federal agencies and as dedicated portal deployments (Mercadito, Santa Monica, etc.) for state and local governments, with Glass Pay providing integrated public-sector payment processing.
Is Glass a public or private company?
Glass is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Glass founded?
Glass was founded in 2017. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Glass based?
Glass is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Glass make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Marketplace Transaction Fees are the primary driver. The others are government Contract Licensing and payment Processing (Glass Pay).
Who are Glass's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Amazon Business, Grainger, Office Depot, Procurated and Bonfire Interactive. Broad incumbents are Coupa Software, Jaggaer, OpenGov and Deltek (GovWin). Stripe is listed as an others.
Does Glass have an API?
No public API is recorded for Glass.
What industry is Glass in?
Glass's product category is Government E-Procurement Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAIAAAH, Public Communications, Transparency & Open Government.