The Birth of Thoras: A Tale of Twin Ingenuity
For years, twin sisters Nilo and Jen Rahmani found themselves deep in conversation, sharing stories and empathizing over the hurdles they faced in their engineering careers. It was during these exchanges that they often discussed their frustrations with the reliability platforms at their workplaces. Nilo shared with TechCrunch how they observed a shift in the reliability landscape, sparking an idea that would leverage their unique experiences to create a viable solution for the industry’s evolving demands.
“Before it was reliability first at all cost,” Nilo told TechCrunch. “Now [companies] are paying more attention to the costs of cloud. The whole industry is being crippled by these costs and the challenge grows exponentially as the business grows.”
Nilo Rahmani
Thoras: Bridging Reliability and Cost-Effectiveness
Driven by this insight, the Rahmani sisters launched Thoras, a Washington, D.C.-based company aimed at achieving a balance between reliability and resource efficiency. Utilizing artificial intelligence, Thoras assists engineers in swiftly identifying the root causes of software disruptions while uncovering optimization opportunities to curtail cloud expenses.
Thoras claims its technology can accelerate issue resolution by 70% and slash cloud costs by up to 60%. As CEO, Nilo emphasizes that their platform is designed to predict demand fluctuations, enabling companies to prepare efficiently for potential reliability challenges by tapping into the right cloud resources beforehand.
The Competitive Edge: A Unique Approach to AI
In a market crowded with players like New Relic, Splunk, and Dynatrace, Thoras seeks to differentiate itself through its distinctive use of AI. While many rely heavily on large language models (LLMs), Nilo points out that Thoras uses smaller models that deliver clearer returns on investment. She believes this approach avoids the inaccuracies and resource overconsumption often associated with LLMs.
Growth Trajectory: From Stealth Mode to Market Leader
Thoras emerged from stealth in January 2024 and quickly gained traction with a $1.5 million pre-seed round in March 2024. Over nine months, the company experienced a remarkable 360% revenue growth. Now, it has announced new financing—$5 million in a seed round led by Wellington Ventures—to meet rising customer demand. This capital will be used for hiring engineers, enhancing products, and expanding operations.
“This round was a lot more smooth sailing,” Nilo said, reflecting on the journey from pre-seed to seed funding. “We had the traction and the metrics that prove we understand product-market fit and what we need to do to get to that next level.”
Nilo Rahmani
Looking Ahead: Expanding Horizons
Currently focused on Kubernetes environments, Thoras plans to broaden its scope into other types of cloud software as part of its product expansion strategy. Jen Rahmani, COO, remarked on the unexpected but powerful synergy between her and Nilo as co-founders—a dynamic neither they nor their immigrant parents had anticipated.
“In the very beginning, [our parents] were confused and nervous for us,” Nilo said. “They always believed in us. Now they are thrilled to see what we are doing.”
Nilo Rahmani
