The founder of Digit, a digital savings platform that was sold for approximately 230 million dollars, has now exited his latest venture after OpenAI acquired his AI-powered personal finance startup Hiro Finance in an acqui-hire arrangement. The development, announced by founder Ethan Bloch on LinkedIn and confirmed by OpenAI, marks another chapter in a long entrepreneurial journey that has seen multiple exits and ventures spanning more than a decade. Hiro, which was launched to help users make data-driven financial decisions using artificial intelligence, is now set to wind down operations as its team transitions into OpenAI.
Hiro Finance was built as an AI-driven personal financial planning tool designed to function as an “AI personal chief financial officer.” Users could input detailed financial data such as income, debts, and monthly expenses, after which the system would generate simulations and scenario-based planning to help guide financial decisions. The platform also focused on improving accuracy in financial calculations and offered users ways to verify results within the app. Since its launch roughly five months ago, Hiro reportedly helped manage planning insights for over 1 billion dollars in assets, highlighting early traction despite its short operational period. According to reports, the startup had around ten employees, all of whom are joining OpenAI as part of the acquisition structure.
The company’s shutdown timeline has already been outlined, with Hiro expected to cease operations on 20 April and user data scheduled for deletion by 13 May. While financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed, the transaction is widely being described as an acqui-hire rather than a traditional acquisition, as OpenAI is primarily absorbing talent and expertise instead of continuing the product. The startup had backing from investors including Ribbit, General Catalyst, and Restive, though it had not publicly disclosed detailed funding figures. The move further reflects OpenAI’s ongoing expansion into applied artificial intelligence areas, including consumer-facing tools that extend beyond its core conversational models.
Ethan Bloch’s entrepreneurial track record adds further context to the acquisition. Before Hiro, he founded Digit, a widely used automated savings application that was acquired by Oportun in 2021 for around 230 million dollars. Earlier in his career, he also built Flowtown, a social media software platform that was sold for 4.5 million dollars in 2009. Hiro represented his fifteenth startup attempt, according to previous statements, with multiple early ventures that did not scale commercially. With Hiro now transitioning into OpenAI, Bloch and his team are expected to contribute to ongoing work in financial intelligence and AI-driven consumer applications, further strengthening OpenAI’s growing focus on real-world utility use cases.
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