Apate sends AI agents undercover to get scammed so they can gather fraud intelligence
techcrunch ·
Apate.ai, an Australian startup founded in 2024, deploys thousands of AI agents to masquerade as innocent victims and engage with scammers. These undercover bots answer scam calls, respond to phishing messages, and join social media groups to bait fraudsters into revealing sensitive information such as bank accounts and crypto wallets. By wasting scammers' time and gathering intelligence before victims are harmed, Apate provides actionable data to its customers, including banks, telecom companies, and government agencies. The company reports that its agents have wasted 17 years of scammers' time across 2.5 million conversations so far. This approach addresses the rising tide of AI-enabled crimes, which resulted in nearly $900 million in losses reported to the FBI in 2025. Apate’s technology is powered by both frontier models and fine-tuned systems trained on past scam interactions. Early results from clients like Commonwealth Bank show significant drops in scam losses, prompting investors to back the venture with over $8 million in funding.
techcrunch