Conifer
Least cost routing system to reduce 70%+ token spend
Founders
- Charles MuehlbergerFounder/CTO
- Michael JeffordsFounder/CGO
Same space
Competitors
Closest in what they build, same category.
Adjacent
Overlapping tags, a different niche.
MentlioS26Engineering Intelligence and Token Optimization for the AI-Coding EraShared: developer toolsActive
Dyneti TechnologiesW19Reduce payment fraudShared: securityActive
AXAR AIW21Multi-agent orchestration platformShared: developer toolsInactive
MagnitudeS25Open source inference server for local modelsShared: developer toolsActive
BricksAIS22Streamlining LLM application management for enterprisesShared: developer toolsInactive
Also from S26 in AI
Batchmates in Summer 2026.
Agnost AIS26We find where AI agents fail, then train better models to run them.Active
Alkera AIS26Reliable and safe data engineering and data science agentsActive
ArchalS26API sandboxes, built for AI agentsActive
CodagS26The AI gateway for cheaper, faster, permissioned agents.Active
DecaworkS26Training company-specific models that approve AI actions.Active
GitCafeS26The Git forge for the next hundred billion commitsActive
Outside YC
Similar companies on companies.fru.dev.
About Conifer
There are thousands of models, providers, and harnesses, each with its own pricing and strengths, leaving an overwhelming number of choices when it comes to managing token spend and intelligence. Conifer uses intelligent routing and orchestration logic to handle the full path of each query: model selection, provider choice, and cache management. It all runs inside your existing harness, so tools like Claude Code and Codex work without changing your setup. By centralizing where inference occurs, Conifer lets companies save on their inference bill while leaving teams free to focus on what they are building.
San Francisco, CA, USA
Conifer: questions
Which YC batch was Conifer in?
Conifer was in Y Combinator's Summer 2026 batch (S26).
Is Conifer still active?
Y Combinator lists Conifer as active.
Who founded Conifer?
Conifer's founders, as listed on its YC page: Charles Muehlberger (Founder/CTO), Michael Jeffords (Founder/CGO).
Where is Conifer based?
Conifer lists San Francisco, CA, USA as its location on YC's directory.
Not affiliated with Y Combinator. From YC's public directory. Logos via logo.dev; trademarks belong to their owners.