Unsensible

Ben Stein

Ben Stein co‑founded and leads Staple AI, a Singapore‑based startup that turns unstructured documents into structured data using AI technologies such as computer vision, natural language processing and machine learning. His goal is clear: to automate data capture, matching and management workflows in industries where paperwork slows everything down¹.

‍

Before launching Staple in 2020, Ben followed a circuitous path that gave him deep visibility into finance, operations and technology. He began his career working in audit and corporate finance roles across KPMG in Australia and the UK, before moving to the United States as a vice president advising on infrastructure projects valued in the hundreds of millions². He then joined Peabody and later Octopus Finance in London to model megaprojects and build public–private investment vehicles³. These roles sharpened his ability to translate complex financial models into tangible results.

‍

From 2017 to 2019, Ben served as CFO at AVTEL, a global security infrastructure provider headquartered in Singapore. There he managed global finance, ERP rollouts, compliance and tax policy and helped the company expand into the US and South Korean markets⁴. He later joined Entrepreneur First as a founder in residence before starting Staple in 2020⁵. These experiences ranged from deep finance to startup acceleration and shaped his vision for applying technology to enterprise operations.

‍

At Staple AI, Ben has built a platform with 95 percent accuracy in data extraction across more than 200 languages and document types. The API automates tasks around invoices, bank statements, purchase orders, contracts, KYC forms and medical claims. Clients in finance, logistics and professional services use it to reduce manual effort, eliminate human error and improve compliance workflows¹.

‍

Ben lives by a disciplined go‑to‑market philosophy. As he told HubSpot for Startups, “When dealing with prospects, a yes makes money, a no saves money, but a maybe costs money.” This led Staple to run weekly marketing experiments early on and decline any opportunity that diverted focus away from their core customer profile⁶.

‍

That mindset was rewarded in 2024, when the company raised a US $4 million pre‑Series A round led by Wavemaker Partners. The fundraising validated Staple’s disciplined approach and demand from enterprise prospects focused on accuracy and flexibility⁶.

‍

Staple also joined SAP.io Foundry, enabling integration with SAP Concur, and expanding adoption through cost and travel expense workflows. That partnership helped launch Staple’s enterprise traction and gave access to finance teams across the SAP ecosystem⁷.

‍

Ben describes his mission simply: to liberate teams from repetitive tasks so they can focus on decision‑making. In an interview, he said most of the world’s data lives in documents trapped in drawers, drives or PDFs. Staple is on a mission to unlock that hidden value and make document data a strategic asset².

‍

As of mid‑2025, Staple serves global enterprises across more than 56 countries and processes tens of thousands of documents daily. The firm positions itself as a cognitive layer for firms that rely heavily on structured data but lack standard input formats⁸.

‍

For founders, Ben offers practical advice. Define your ideal customer early. Run low-cost marketing experiments. Qualify prospects quickly and say no to distractions. Do not let “maybes” drain your time or capital. Focus on value, not vanity metrics.

‍

His ability to operate at the intersection of technology, finance and compliance comes from years of experience in global roles and cumulative exposure to operational inefficiencies in banking, government infrastructure and enterprise workflows. Staple AI is the result — an AI-powered backbone for enterprise data, where speed, accuracy and trust reduce friction.

‍

References