AthenaHQ
AthenaHQ is a San Francisco-based AI search optimization platform founded in 2024 that helps enterprise marketing teams monitor and improve brand visibility, citations, and accuracy across 8+ LLMs, serving 2,400+ customers across 33+ industry verticals.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2024
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What AthenaHQ does
AthenaHQ is a San Francisco-based SaaS company founded in 2024 that builds a Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) and Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) platform for enterprise marketing teams. The platform monitors brand visibility, citations, and accuracy across 8+ large language models including ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, Copilot, Google AI Mode, and Google AI Overviews, processing 1.7B page views and 85M+ unique AI sources through proprietary machine learning models. Core modules include Prompt Volume tracking with dollar-value forecasting, Brand Integrity with hallucination detection, Content Agents for automated on-page and off-page optimization, the Athena Citation Engine (ACE) for source-level intelligence, the Oracle discrepancy detector, and Ask Athena, an agentic AI copilot. Native integrations with Shopify, Webflow, Framer, GA4, and Google Search Console, plus enterprise BI tool exports (Tableau, Power BI, Looker), enable workflow embedding.
The company monetizes through a three-tier subscription model: a free Essential tier (300 credits, ChatGPT-only monitoring), a Starter plan at $295/month with 9-model coverage and 3,600 credits, and a custom-priced Enterprise plan with SAML SSO, multi-region/multi-language support, persona targeting, and white-glove onboarding. Go-to-market combines enterprise field sales for Fortune 500 buyers, a self-serve PLG motion for SMBs, an agency partnership program with Bronze/Silver/Gold tiers, and white-label OEM distribution. As of early 2026, AthenaHQ serves 2,400+ customers across 33+ verticals in 47–90+ countries, with named logos including Coinbase, SoFi, Slalom, PagerDuty, Nextiva, Apryse, DeVry University, Indiana University, and Opella. The company is Y Combinator-backed with $2.7M in disclosed seed funding and has been featured in Forbes and the Wall Street Journal.
AthenaHQ firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- AthenaHQ
- Legal name
- AthenaHQ
- Website
- https://athenahq.ai
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2024
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- AthenaHQ is a San Francisco-based AI search optimization platform founded in 2024 that helps enterprise marketing teams monitor and improve brand visibility, citations, and accuracy across 8+ LLMs, serving 2,400+ customers across 33+ industry verticals.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
AthenaHQ industry classification
Industry- Product category
- AI Search Optimization Software
- NAICS
- Software Publishers (5132), Software Publishers (513210)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Enterprise AI Governance, Risk & Compliance Platforms (Model Risk, Audit, Policies) (HDAEANAE)
Keywords
Where AthenaHQ is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
AthenaHQ business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Operations
Revenue model
- Subscription SaaS - Essential (Free): Free tier providing basic monitoring across ChatGPT only, with 300 credits, unlimited members, prompt and response analysis, competitor insights, and content recommendations
- Subscription SaaS - Starter: $295/month subscription with 3,600 credits, visibility across 9 models, API access, integrations, data export, content optimization agent, and self-learning content improvement. Annual pricing available at 17% discount.
- Subscription SaaS - Enterprise: Custom enterprise plan with Knowledge Base, claim review, ACE citation engine, Oracle discrepancy detection, SAML/SSO, audit logs, multi-region/multi-language support, persona targeting, and white-glove setup. Pricing based on custom credits, websites, and access controls.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Free tier with basic ChatGPT monitoring |
| Subscription | Monthly | SMB-focused plan with 9-model coverage |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Custom enterprise plan with full feature access |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels8 records
AthenaHQ product offering
Product offeringCore offering
AthenaHQ is a unified SaaS platform that monitors, measures, and optimizes how brands appear in AI-generated search answers across 8+ large language models including ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and Google AI Overviews. The platform combines real-time visibility tracking, competitive benchmarking, prompt-volume estimation, hallucination detection, and prescriptive content recommendations, delivered to enterprise marketing teams, agencies, and multi-location brands. Pricing is delivered via a free Essential tier, a $295/month Starter plan, and custom Enterprise contracts with SSO, BI tool integration, and white-glove setup.
Product overview
AthenaHQ is a unified SaaS platform for Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) and Generative Engine Optimization (GEO). The platform consists of a core monitoring and analytics engine complemented by specialized capability modules: Prompt Volume (enterprise-grade prompt tracking), Monitoring (real-time AI visibility tracking), Content Agents (automated content optimization), Agencies (client management and pitch workspace), Ecommerce (Shopify integration for AI-optimized content), and Brand Integrity (hallucination detection and accuracy monitoring). The platform also includes Ask Athena, an agentic AI copilot, and the Athena Citation Engine (ACE) for enterprise citation intelligence. AthenaHQ serves 2,400+ enterprise customers across 33+ industry verticals including Software, CPG, E-Commerce, Financial Services, Healthcare, Travel, Beauty, Wellness, Education, and Multi-Location businesses.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- AthenaHQ Platform
Quantifiable outcome
- Grüns achieved 6x Share of Voice lift in 60 days (2.0% to 12.6%), with 19% brand mentions and 23x citation rate driven by prompt-led strategy
- +15 more outcomes
Companies that use AthenaHQ
Customer profileNamed customers20 records
Segments9 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
AthenaHQ technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration13 records
AI capability11 records
Feature8 records
AthenaHQ partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- UberallcoreUberall launched the first Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) Studio in collaboration with AthenaHQ to help multi-location brands improve their AI search visibility. The new platform addresses inaccurate AI-based brand representations by providing tools to monitor AI visibility, generate AI-readable local content, and automate publishing across multiple channels.
- ShopifycoreNative Shopify integration allowing ecommerce brands to seamlessly publish GEO-optimized content directly to their Shopify store and measure AI Search's impact on revenue through the app. Enables product recommendation tracking and revenue attribution from AI Search.
- Google Analytics (GA4)coreGA4 integration allows connecting AI Search visibility to traffic and conversions, enabling customers to understand the downstream impact of AI search optimization efforts.
- Google Search ConsolecoreGoogle Search Console integration enables comparison of SEO and AEO performance side by side, showing how traditional search metrics correlate with AI search visibility.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
AthenaHQ competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Profound: Direct competitor offering AI search visibility tracking and analytics across multiple LLMs. Targets the same enterprise marketing buyer with comparable monitoring and optimization workflows.
- Peec AI: Direct competitor in the AI search analytics space, tracking brand mentions and performance across generative AI engines for marketing teams.
- Scrunch AI: Direct competitor offering AI search monitoring and content optimization for brands seeking visibility in generative engine results.
Broad incumbents
- Semrush: Established SEO platform with large enterprise customer base. Has begun adding AI search visibility features, directly threatening standalone GEO vendors like AthenaHQ through bundling.
- Ahrefs: Major SEO and content platform expanding into AI search visibility. Competes for the same marketing team budget with bundled legacy SEO capabilities.
- BrightEdge: Enterprise SEO and content performance platform that has introduced AI search and generative engine optimization features for Fortune 500 marketing teams.
- Yext: Digital presence platform with structured data and brand visibility capabilities overlapping with AthenaHQ's multi-location GEO Studio use case via the Uberall white-label partnership context.
- Conductor: Enterprise SEO and content optimization platform serving large marketing organizations, beginning to incorporate AI search optimization capabilities.
- Moz: Established SEO software vendor expanding into AI/LLM search visibility tracking for SMB and mid-market marketing teams.
Emerging players
- Otterly.AI: Early-stage AI search monitoring and brand mention tracking tool focused on ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews — direct overlap with AthenaHQ's monitoring product but narrower scope.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
AthenaHQ social profiles
Digital presenceAthenaHQ compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance3 records
AthenaHQ financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
AthenaHQ leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
AthenaHQ funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors5 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
AthenaHQ 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 AthenaHQ
What does AthenaHQ do?
AthenaHQ is a unified SaaS platform that monitors, measures, and optimizes how brands appear in AI-generated search answers across 8+ large language models including ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and Google AI Overviews. The platform combines real-time visibility tracking, competitive benchmarking, prompt-volume estimation, hallucination detection, and prescriptive content recommendations, delivered to enterprise marketing teams, agencies, and multi-location brands. Pricing is delivered via a free Essential tier, a $295/month Starter plan, and custom Enterprise contracts with SSO, BI tool integration, and white-glove setup.
Is AthenaHQ a public or private company?
AthenaHQ is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was AthenaHQ founded?
AthenaHQ was founded in 2024. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is AthenaHQ based?
AthenaHQ is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does AthenaHQ make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Subscription SaaS - Essential (Free) is the primary driver. The others are subscription SaaS - Starter and subscription SaaS - Enterprise.
Who are AthenaHQ's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Profound, Peec AI and Scrunch AI. Broad incumbents are Semrush, Ahrefs, BrightEdge, Yext, Conductor and Moz. Otterly.AI is listed as an emerging player.
Does AthenaHQ have an API?
Yes. API access is available on Starter and higher plans. The Starter plan offers API access and add-on credits (1 credit = 1 AI response). The API enables developers to access AI visibility data, integrate with existing workflows, and programmatically retrieve brand monitoring insights.
What industry is AthenaHQ in?
AthenaHQ's product category is AI Search Optimization Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAEANAE, Enterprise AI Governance, Risk & Compliance Platforms (Model Risk, Audit, Policies). Its NAICS code is 5132 and its SIC code is 7372.