This Stanford engineer is changing how plumbers and electricians work, through AI
Meet Melisa Tokmak, founder and CEO of Netic, a startup on a mission to overhaul how plumbers, roofers, and electricians manage their work, through autonomous AI. Backed by a recent $23 million Series B round led by Founders Fund, Netic is delivering an autonomous AI engine that promises to automate entire job booking and customer intake processes, letting small and regional service businesses recapture missed revenue and streamline operations.
Tokmak, whose background includes computer science at Stanford, product leadership at Meta’s Facebook and Instagram, and pivotal roles at Scale AI, left high-profile gigs inspired by a frustrating personal experience booking home services. This moment sparked an idea to bring intelligent automation into the everyday home.
The home services sector—encompassing HVAC, plumbing, roofing, electrical, and pest control—has long stood as a fragmented and under-digitized industry. Many businesses still rely on manual call handling, outdated booking systems, and spreadsheets. Missed calls, scheduling conflicts, and underutilized labor remain endemic issues. The cost of inaction is stark: lost revenue and diminished customer satisfaction. Tokmak recognized this gap and envisioned an AI assistant that does more than assist — that autonomously executes tasks from intake to dispatch.
Netic’s AI tackles multiple communication channels simultaneously, from phone calls and SMS to web chats and marketplace inquiries. It triages surges in demand, schedules jobs directly into existing CRM or field service management tools, and manages customer outreach without human intervention. The technology essentially transforms the chaotic frontdesk of these businesses into a smooth-running, 24/7 intelligent unit capable of handling high call volumes, even in crisis situations.
The turning point for Netic came as they emerged from stealth in mid-2025, quickly drawing attention for their agentic AI approach and ability to manage real-time surges. For example, during a recent tornado event, rather than being overwhelmed, a regional home service company using Netic’s AI smoothly handled hundreds of emergency calls, triaging and scheduling with precision.
Series B funding led by Founders Fund not only brought $23 million into Netic’s coffers but also pushed its valuation to approximately $450 million. This round follows Founders Fund’s prior backing of Netic through seed and Series A rounds, signaling strong conviction in Tokmak’s vision and the product-market fit.
This influx of capital accelerates hiring, expands go-to-market strategies, and supports integrations with varied legacy dispatch systems—a critical hurdle when automating customer workflows in diverse environments with complex operational needs.
Yet, Netic’s ambitions come with challenges. Reliability must be near flawless: callers must feel heard and properly routed, and no jobs should be misplaced. Furthermore, legal and privacy frameworks around voice recording and customer data processing require strict adherence. Missteps could risk customer churn and reputational harm.
Despite these hurdles, the meaningful impacts are crystal clear. For small business owners and independent contractors, Netic promises steadier work schedules, fewer no-shows, and higher revenue capture. For the broader home services ecosystem, it marks a significant step toward embedding AI deeply into everyday small-business operations — moving beyond assistive tools to AI agents that truly do the work.
For founders watching this space, Melisa Tokmak’s journey illustrates the power of marrying strong tech expertise with firsthand founder insight—spotting an inefficiency in a traditional industry, then harnessing cutting-edge AI to deliver tangible value and market transformation.
Netic’s story also reveals a broader trend. As AI moves past the glamour of consumer apps and flashy enterprise systems, it finds fertile ground in the often-overlooked realms of real-world small business. Automation here is not about replacing people but amplifying economic opportunity for local businesses that form the backbone of communities nationwide.
