Prague’s TopK raises €4.6M to build a search engine for the AI era

Prague-based TopK has raised $5.5M (nearly €4.66M) in seed funding to advance its AI-native search platform. The company is developing a unified search engine that enables developers and AI agents to manage both structured and unstructured data through a single system.

The funding round included investments from Earlybird, KAYA, Irregular Expressions, and several angel investors.

Andre Retterath, General Partner at Earlybird, says, “Companies are facing the limitations of current search systems. TopK brings a fundamental shift in how infrastructure is built, along with a deep understanding of the problems that development teams face every day. That’s why we support their vision to create a search system for the AI era.”

Capital utilisation

TopK plans to use the funds to grow its team and develop its enterprise offering for large-scale search applications.

Karel Zheng from KAYA says, “TopK has built the core of their database to deliver the fastest and most cost-effective hybrid search solution on the market – all with a small but exceptionally capable team. The investment will allow them to accelerate the development, deliver the enterprise-grade features, and succeed on a global scale.”

Search engine built for modern AI applications

TopK is developing a search platform that brings together vector search, keyword matching, filtering, and ranking in a single system. This approach is designed to support AI agents and developers working with both structured and unstructured data.

Marek Galovič and Jerguš Lejko, who founded TopK in 2024, previously worked on large-scale systems and AI tools before launching the company. The team also includes Peter Toth and Barbora Grillusová.

Marek Galovič, CEO and co-founder, says, “The database market is undergoing a fundamental transformation. The boom in AI-native products is pushing the limits of traditional search systems, which no longer meet current demands. Our platform addresses this shift in the market and provides a solution for developers and AI agents to unify structured and unstructured retrieval at scale.”

TopK’s platform allows users to run complex queries through one search request and adjust results to match domain-specific needs in areas such as e-commerce, finance, healthcare, and law.

As interest in vector databases grows alongside the use of large language models, TopK aims to meet demand with its hybrid retrieval method. Future plans include adding support for natural language understanding and multi-modal data to expand the platform’s reach.

Jerguš Lejko, CTO and co-founder, adds, “We are changing the way data is searched and building a platform tailored for development teams that work with large volumes of data and demand high performance, flexibility, and cost efficiency.”

“Our goal is to become the unified query layer that powers search for the world’s most advanced apps. That’s why we welcome design partnerships that challenge us with technically demanding problems and help us push the product even further.”

Brief about the investors

Founded in 1997, Earlybird is a VC firm that invests in early-stage companies across Europe. It operates two main strategies: one focused on tech-driven sectors such as fintech, insurtech, enterprise software, and deep tech, and another through Earlybird Health, which targets healthcare-related ventures. The firm also runs a Growth Opportunity Fund for follow-on investments and Vision Lab, a pro-bono impact initiative. Earlybird manages €2.5B and has supported 9 IPOs and 35 trade sales.

KAYA is a VC fund that supports founders across Central and Eastern Europe, including Czechia, Poland, Slovakia, and other locations where these founders operate. Founded in 2010 in Prague, KAYA manages over $250M across four funds. The firm has invested in over 40 startups, including Docplanner, Rohlík, and Booksy.