Let’s talk about Caspian, a name that sounds like it belongs on a globe, not a customs form. But don’t get it twisted. This isn’t some sleepy trade consultancy or back-office plug-in trying to squeeze margin off regulatory red tape. Caspian is the AI-native beast quietly taking a $10B market that most exporters don’t even realize they’re leaving on the table.
Here’s the setup: U.S. businesses overpay on import duties every year, by the billions. Most of them never file for refunds, either because the process is buried in 1980s bureaucracy or because they don’t even know they’re eligible. What Caspian does is take that dusty old process, pump it full of automation, and fire it directly into the modern age. Think AI that doesn’t just scan PDFs, it reconciles cross-border shipping and inventory data faster than your CFO can say, “Where’s my refund?”
Founded in 2024 by Justin Sherlock and Matt Ebeweber, two Flexport alums who’ve seen how slow customs can wreck global trade economics, Caspian just dropped a $5.4M seed round. Backed by Primary Venture Partners, with Emily Man now on the board, and Blank Ventures repping through Hannah Chelkowski, this round wasn’t about theory. It was about speed, certainty, and proof that even customs can have a growth story.
And growth? Try this: Caspian reduces refund timelines from months to days. They’re not just matching shipment data, they’re structuring it, filing it directly through CBP’s ABI interface, and moving funds to clients faster than legacy brokers can find the stapler. UltiMaker’s already in, along with a crew of e-commerce and manufacturing exporters who now see customs refunds as a line item, not a miracle.
The platform’s built like a war machine. Python, TensorFlow, AWS microservices. Document parsing at scale, integrated with ERP, WMS, and TMS systems. SOC2 in progress, CBP ABI certified, and fully licensed as a U.S. Customs Broker. Translation: they don’t need permission, they’re already in the system.
This isn’t some compliance play dressed up as innovation. Caspian is straight financial optimization, helping exporters unlock capital they already earned but never claimed. That’s the part no one talks about: duty drawback isn’t a refund. It’s recovery. And Caspian is turning that into a competitive weapon.
The funding fuels more than hiring, it’s about scale. More integrations. More automation. More exporters recovering millions they didn’t even know were theirs. Justin Sherlock and Matt Ebeweber aren’t building a consultancy. They’re engineering a platform that treats customs like a balance sheet lever.
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