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Clerk

Category: AI Developer Tools

Complete user management and authentication platform providing embeddable UIs, flexible APIs, and admin dashboards for modern web applications, now expanding into AI agent identity solutions Clerk was founded in 2019. The company is led by Colin Sidoti. Based in San Francisco, California, USA. Team size: 101-250. Total funding raised: $99M. Latest round: Series C. Key investors include ["Menlo Ventures","Anthropic Anthology Fund","Georgian","CRV","Stripe","Andreessen Horowitz","Madrona","S28 Capital","Fathom Capital","Mango Capital"].

Founded
2019
Headquarters
San Francisco, California, USA
Team size
101-250
Total funding
$99M

Value proposition

Simplify and accelerate the process of adding authentication and user management to applications with developer-first components, allowing developers to focus on their core product while providing enterprise-grade security

Products and solutions

["Embeddable authentication components (SignUp, SignIn, UserButton, UserProfile)","Organization management components for B2B SaaS","Billing and subscription management","Flexible APIs for custom user management flows","Admin dashboards for user and session management","AI agent identity solutions for autonomous AI agents"]

Unique value

Clerk's primary unique factor is its focus on developer experience with component-based integration that deeply integrates with modern web development frameworks, now pioneering AI agent identity solutions for autonomous AI agents

Target customer

Web developers, startups, and businesses using modern web frameworks like React, Next.js, and other JavaScript frameworks

Industries served

["Technology","SaaS","E-commerce","Fintech","AI/ML applications"]

Technology advantage

Component-based integration model combining backend APIs with pre-built frontend components, now expanding into secure authentication for AI agents with fine-grained permissions and auditability

How they differentiate

Clerk differentiates through developer-first approach with embeddable UI components, deep framework integration, and now pioneering AI agent identity solutions while competitors retrofit legacy systems for AI

Main competitors

["Auth0 (Okta)","Firebase Auth","Supabase Auth","Descope","Stytch"]

Key partnerships

["Stripe","Vercel","Supabase","Convex","Anthropic (through Anthology Fund investment)"]

Notable customers

["Grafbase","Honeylove","Blueground","Replit","Vercel","Browserbase","Inngest","Suno","Braintrust","Durable"]

Major milestones

["Raised $50M Series C led by Menlo Ventures and Anthropic's Anthology Fund in October 2025","Strategic partnership with Stripe for payment integration","Expanded services beyond authentication into authorization and billing","Pioneering AI agent identity solutions for autonomous AI agents","Serving 200+ million users across 15,000+ applications"]

Growth metrics

200+ million managed users across 15,000+ applications

Market positioning

Positioned as a modern, developer-friendly authentication solution for startups and growing companies, competing with enterprise-focused incumbents by offering streamlined, intuitive platform

Geographic focus

Headquartered in San Francisco with primary market focus on North America and English-speaking regions, serving global developer community

Patents and IP

No public patents or IP information available

About Colin Sidoti

Co-Founder & CEO at Clerk since 2019. Previously Co-Founder and CTO of Harbor Inc. (2016-2022). MIT graduate with background in software development and startups.

Official website: