The era of the agentic-ai applied to purchases
Within companies, purchases has long been considered a support function, assigned to the execution of slow, complex and fragmented processes. But at the time of the supply chains, sobriety policies and industrial resilience plans, the procurement changes nature and becomes a lever for competitiveness
This paradigm change involves the emergence of intelligent agents in purchasing management tools. Unlike conventional chatbots or co -pilots, these autonomous agents make operational decisions from rules, objectives and data in real time.
It is on this niche that Mercanisa Berlin startup founded in 2020. Its SaaS software incorporates a full suite of modules covering the analysis of expenses, sourcing, supplier management and contractual management. But its specificity is based on its Co-pilot baptized Mercuwhich automates complex tasks such as risk detection, calling for tenders, comparison of quotes, supplier qualification.
“What we were doing in several days now takes a few hours,” says Uwe KreplinPurchasing Director at Gasag, one of Mercanis’s industrial customers. “Automation and transparency allow us to make better decisions, more quickly, even with several stakeholders.”
The results announced go up to 40 % productivity gainsa operational efficiency multiplied by 2.5 And A return on investment of 12x. A promise that seduces groups like Basf-Coating, Brose or Wilson, but also investors looking for tools actually deployable on a scale.
“Mercanis does not sell a future vision, but an operational product with rapid adoption in companies weighing billions”, analyzes Philippe COLLOMBELManaging Partner at Parth. “What they automate is not comfort is heart of activity.”
This dynamic is not isolated. A new ecosystem is emerging around theAgenic AI Applied to Purchasingwith various approaches according to geographies.
In Francesolutions like Ivalua,, Oalia focus on performance and governance, but few adopt a logic of autonomous agents. Strong innovation remains to come on this ground.
In Northern and central Europea generation of startups is distinguished by their native orientation. Besides Mercanis in Germany, we find Scoutbee (smart sourcing), Tacto (industrial management), Archlet (Optimization of tenders) or Kodiak Hub (supplier scorecards). Germany, in particular, concentrates the most advanced actors, in a direct link with industrial needs.
To UNITED STATEStools like Zip,, Arkestro Or Fairmarkit redefine ergonomics and purchase automation, with a modular approach adapted to SCALE-UPS as well as large companies. Giants like Cut And SAP Ariba Also try to integrate an AI layer into their historical consequences, without however reaching the fluidity of natively agentic actors.
In an unstable geopolitical context, where access to raw materials, qualified suppliers or regulatory compliance becomes critical, purchasing departments become nerve centers. AI agents can then play a strategic multiplier role, releasing the teams of repetitive tasks to concentrate them on negotiation, risk management and value creation.
“In times of economic uncertainty, our technology helps companies strengthen the resilience of their purchasing operations and protect their margins,” said Fabian Heinrichco -founder and CEO of Mercanis.
The Berlin startup has just announced a fundraising of 17.3 million euros in series Aled by Partner And AVPwith the participation of Signals.vc,, Speedinvest,, Capmont Technologyand several renowned business angels like Victor Jacobsson (Klarna) or Mirko Novakovic (Instana). Mercanis plans to use these funds to strengthen its teams and set up on the North American market. One more step towards the worldwide dissemination of Agentic-Ai as a new base of support functions.
