TechCrunch Startup News Fuse wants to disrupt aging loan origination systems used by US credit unions; plus, Another deep tech chip startup becomes a unicorn: Frore hits $1.64B
Mar 17, 2026
A startup is rethinking loan origination with AI-native systems and a $5M rescue fund to convince credit unions to ditch decades-old software. Liquid cooling for chips takes center stage as a deep tech company raises big capital and reaches unicorn status after pivoting to serve major semiconductor makers.
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AI-Native Loan Origination Rethinks Legacy LOS
- Fuse reimagined the Loan Origination System by building an AI-native platform to replace decade-old LOS workflows.
- Founders Andres Klerik and Mark Escapa pivoted from automotive lending to an AI-first LOS and raised $25M with over 100 customers already.
Use A Rescue Fund To Ease Legacy Migration
- Do offer pragmatic transition support to win conservative customers tied to long vendor contracts.
- Fuse allocated a $5M rescue fund and will let the first 50 qualifying credit unions use the platform free until existing contracts expire.
Credit Unions Are Untapped AI Opportunity
- Credit unions represent a large, underserved market primed for AI upgrades because their core LOS is as mission-critical as ERP or CRM.
- Footwork's Nikhil Basu-Trivedi noted 4,000+ US credit unions need modern tooling but lack know-how to adopt AI.