Every AI startup listicle samples. This one counts. Our database holds 513 AI companies from the 2026 cohort: four Y Combinator batches (Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall 2026) plus AI startups listed on the TrustMRR and Indie Hackers marketplaces. Every entry carries a category, a batch and a one line description, and 474 of the 513 name their founders. Every listing is free. No company paid to be here, and no paid offer can move a company up the list.
1. The 513, by category
Vertical AI is the biggest group at 149 companies: AI built for one industry at a time. Agents follow at 137, then AI devtools at 58 and robotics at 51. Infrastructure (29), security (25), voice and audio (17), vision (10) and data (8) make up the long tail, with 29 marketplace listed companies in the other group. Every category below has its own page with the full company list, founders and headquarters.
| Category | Companies | Share of database |
|---|---|---|
| Vertical AI Startups | 149 | 29.0% |
| AI Agent Startups | 137 | 26.7% |
| AI DevTools Startups | 58 | 11.3% |
| AI Robotics Startups | 51 | 9.9% |
| AI Infrastructure Startups | 29 | 5.7% |
| AI Security Startups | 25 | 4.9% |
| AI Voice and Audio Startups | 17 | 3.3% |
| AI Vision Startups | 10 | 1.9% |
| AI Data Startups | 8 | 1.6% |
| More AI Startups | 29 | 5.7% |
2. Where the cohort sits
Geography is concentrated. 411 of the 513 companies list a United States headquarters, 367 of them in San Francisco, with New York City next at 25 and London at 11. By intake, YC Summer 2026 is the largest batch at 173 companies, ahead of Fall 2026 at 149, Winter at 83 and Spring at 79. The remaining 29 companies arrived through marketplace listings rather than a batch, and they are the group that reports revenue: 12 of them, all Stripe-verified, totalling $14,153 a month.
3. How to use this list
Start with the category that matches your problem, then read the company pages: each one carries the startup's story, its founders and its facts in one place. If you are tracking the cohort rather than shopping, the batch pages and the revenue list are the two views that change fastest. The database is the launch platform: founders launch free, readers search free, and the list keeps growing from here.
4. How the database is built
Two sources feed it. Y Combinator publishes its batch companies with founders, descriptions and headquarters; that is 484 of the 513. The marketplaces, TrustMRR and Indie Hackers, contribute 29 listings that trade on revenue rather than pedigree. We record what each source states and nothing it does not: no estimated funding, no guessed revenue, no headcount theatre.
- Founders named on 474 of 513 listings
- A headquarters recorded for 477 listings
- A batch or marketplace source on every listing
- Monthly revenue on 12 listings, all Stripe-verified
The list is a snapshot of a moving cohort. Companies will pivot, rename and shut down; that is what cohorts do. What will not change is the deal: listings stay free, order follows the data, and corrections from founders go in through the contact page.
Source: AIToolGuide 2026 startups database (513 AI companies), compiled from Y Combinator 2026 batch listings and the TrustMRR and Indie Hackers marketplaces.