As artificial intelligence workloads increasingly depend on always-on cloud infrastructure, a new startup is betting that cloud downtime has become one of the biggest unpriced risks in the AI-driven economy.

Mantas today emerged from stealth, announcing a $1.77 million seed funding round and the launch of its AI-enabled parametric insurance platform designed to provide automatic payouts during cloud outages. The round includes Nuwa Capital, Suhail Ventures, Plus VC, OQAL Angel Syndicate, and strategic angel investors, with funds earmarked for product development, AI-based risk modelling, and early deployments across the MENA region and North America.

AI-powered applications from fintech decision engines and airline systems to e-commerce platforms and SaaS products are now deeply tied to hyperscale cloud providers. Even brief outages can halt automated workflows, disrupt AI models in production, and cause immediate revenue loss. Yet financial protection for such failures has lagged behind technological adoption.

Mantas addresses this gap by combining real-time cloud monitoring with parametric insurance. Its platform uses verified outage data and predefined triggers to automatically release payouts, removing the need for lengthy claims processes. The company also provides AI-driven risk intelligence to help businesses assess exposure and make better infrastructure decisions before failures occur.

“Cloud downtime is one of the largest unpriced liabilities in the AI economy,” said Basil Mimi, CEO and co-founder of Mantas. “Businesses have invested heavily in AI and automation, but the financial layer hasn’t kept pace. Parametric insurance allows us to make cloud outages measurable and insurable.”

The startup’s focus comes amid accelerating global cloud and AI adoption. In North America, outages are becoming more systemic as AI workloads concentrate on a small number of platforms. In the Middle East, enterprises and governments are rapidly moving toward cloud-first and AI-first strategies, increasing exposure to infrastructure disruptions.

“Downtime is often treated as a technical issue, but for AI-driven businesses it’s fundamentally a financial one,” said Arnav Danthi, Principal at Nuwa Capital. “Mantas ties insurance coverage directly to real-world infrastructure behaviour, which is a meaningful shift.”

Mantas is positioning itself at the intersection of AI, cloud infrastructure, and financial risk, aiming to ensure resilience keeps pace with automation.