Data visualization all-stars unveil Ridge AI with $2.6M to fix the analytics problem for SaaS apps
By Todd Bishop
Published on April 6, 2026.
Ellie Fields and Jeffrey Heer, two data visualization experts, have launched Ridge AI, a Seattle-based startup to address the problem of presenting and analyzing data on the web. The company uses AI and browser-based technology to help software companies build and deploy interactive dashboards and data agents in hours instead of days or months. The core product is a “ridge” — a dashboard and data agent that share a common data set, allowing users to access visual context and follow-up questions through the agent. The startup has received $2.6 million in pre-seed funding from Madrona, led by Tim Porter and Venture Partner Mark Nelson, former CEO of Tableau. Although their technology could be applied broadly, Ridge AI is focusing on serving software as a service (SaaS) companies.
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