Kais Khimji, a former partner at Sequoia Capital, announced the launch of his AI-powered calendar scheduling startup, Blockit, on Thursday. The company secured a $5 million seed round led by Sequoia, marking a significant endorsement from Khimji's former employer. Blockit aims to leverage recent advancements in large language models (LLMs) to automate and streamline the scheduling process, offering a more efficient solution than existing platforms.

Khimji originally conceived the idea for Blockit while a student at Harvard about 10 years ago. He believes that Blockit's AI agents can handle scheduling with greater ease and effectiveness compared to previous attempts at automated scheduling, including startups like Clara Labs and x.ai, the latter of which's domain name is now owned by Elon Musk's AI company. Pat Grady, Sequoia's general partner and co-steward, expressed confidence in Blockit's potential, stating in a blog post that the company "has a chance to become a $1 billion revenue business."

Blockit differentiates itself from current market leader Calendly by utilizing AI to proactively manage and negotiate scheduling conflicts, rather than simply providing a platform for users to book available time slots. The company's technology is designed to understand user preferences and priorities, allowing it to make intelligent decisions about scheduling appointments and meetings. This approach aims to reduce the manual effort required for calendar management and improve overall productivity.

The market for automated scheduling tools has seen considerable activity in recent years, with numerous startups attempting to address the challenges of coordinating meetings and appointments. However, many of these ventures have struggled to gain traction due to limitations in technology and user adoption. Blockit hopes to overcome these hurdles by leveraging the latest advancements in AI and machine learning.

While specific details about Blockit's product features and pricing are not yet publicly available, the company is expected to launch its platform in the coming months. The funding will be used to further develop the AI technology, expand the team, and scale the business. Khimji's background as a venture investor, combined with Sequoia's backing, positions Blockit as a potentially disruptive player in the calendar scheduling space.