# Justin Wohlstadter

> Justin Wohlstadter is the founder and CEO of Waldo, a New Orleans-based AI research platform that helps marketing agencies and brands get smart fast for pitches, brand strategy, and creative work. Before Waldo, he spent nearly a decade running Wonder (AskWonder.com), an on-demand human research service powered by thousands of analysts worldwide, and earlier co-founded BOLDstart Ventures, where he backed companies later acquired by Google, LinkedIn, Salesforce, and Akamai. A Harvard and Oxford graduate who wrote his master's dissertation on how the internet would reshape access to education, he has spent his entire career chasing one obsession: making it faster for a curious person to know more than they did a minute ago.

- **Role:** Founder & CEO at Waldo
- **Organizations:** Waldo, Wonder (AskWonder.com), BOLDstart Ventures, Divide, Bluevolume
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** BA in Government, Harvard University, MSc in Comparative Social Policy, University of Oxford, Economics, University College London (UCL)
- **Known for:** Founded and scaled Wonder, an on-demand research service with thousands of analysts globally, Co-founded BOLDstart Ventures with a portfolio of companies acquired by Google, LinkedIn, Salesforce, Akamai, Lithium, and Telenav, Built Waldo into an AI research tool used by brands including Airbnb, Kettle & Fire, and Conair

## Career timeline

- **2002** — Founded Bluevolume, a web design firm that evolved into a startup incubator
- **2010** — Co-founded BOLDstart Ventures; led or co-led investments in Divide, GoInstant, Klout, Rapportive, Blaze, ThinkNear, IndieGoGo, and Yipit
- **2011** — Director of Product Design at Divide (later acquired by Google), working from New York, Hong Kong, and London
- **2012** — Founded Wonder (AskWonder.com), an on-demand research service powered by thousands of analysts worldwide
- **2021** — Launched Waldo, beginning as a Chrome extension search engine for professionals
- **2025** — Raised $10M Series A for Waldo, now an AI research platform for agencies and brands; clients include Airbnb, Kettle & Fire, and Conair

## Achievements

- Founded and scaled Wonder, an on-demand research service with thousands of analysts globally
- Co-founded BOLDstart Ventures with a portfolio of companies acquired by Google, LinkedIn, Salesforce, Akamai, Lithium, and Telenav
- Built Waldo into an AI research tool used by brands including Airbnb, Kettle & Fire, and Conair
- Raised a $10M Series A for Waldo in September 2025 with backing from Index Ventures, Lightspeed, Insight Partners, Footwork, and Boldstart Ventures
- Earned degrees from Harvard and Oxford

## Latest updates

- **2025-09** — Closed a $10 million Series A for Waldo, now positioned as an AI research and insights platform for marketing agencies and brands.
- **2025-10** — Celebrated the raise with the Waldo team at New Orleans' Idea Village, highlighting the company's New Orleans base.

## Links

- Website: https://waldo.fyi
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/justinw
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/justpw
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8hbA4rp_3c
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/justpw/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/justin-wohlstadter
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-11