Sona is a next-generation, AI-driven workforce management platform built for the nearly two billion frontline workers who have historically been underserved by HR technology. Founded in 2021 in London by Steffen Wulff Petersen, Oli Johnson, and Ben Dixon, the company set out to bring the same operational sophistication that white-collar teams enjoy to care homes, restaurants, hotels, retailers, and logistics operators. Its platform combines demand forecasting, intelligent scheduling, time and attendance, HR records, and integrated payroll in one place, eliminating the patchwork of spreadsheets and disconnected point tools that frontline managers typically juggle.
The core promise is better workforce decisions across every location. Sona's forecasting engine predicts labor demand by site and time, then generates schedules that match staffing to that demand while respecting compliance rules, employee preferences, and budget constraints. This directly translates into measurable operating efficiencies, reduced agency spend, and lower turnover, which are existential concerns in high-churn frontline industries. To date, millions of shifts have been created on the platform.
A distinguishing feature is Raffy, Sona's conversational AI assistant, which lets managers and staff ask natural-language questions about schedules, pay, and policy, and gives leaders proactive recommendations rather than static dashboards. Sona is architected for enterprise scale, supporting organizations operating across hundreds of locations with complex labor rules.
The company raised a $27.5M Series A in May 2024 led by Felicis, with participation from Northzone, Google's AI-focused Gradient Ventures, SpeedInvest, Antler, and BAG Ventures, bringing total funding to over $40M. In 2023 the company reported more than 400% revenue growth. Sona is using the capital to expand its US go-to-market motion and deepen its AI capabilities for the frontline workforce.