Martha Stewart is launching Hint, an AI-powered home management app, next week at age 84, marking another major venture for the lifestyle entrepreneur after recently launching the skincare brand Elm Biosciences. The app, which Stewart co-founded with Yih-Han Ma (CEO, formerly of Red Ventures) and Kyle Rush (CTO, an alum of Casper), raised $10 million in funding from investors including Slow Ventures and Tusk Venture Partners.
Hint is described as an “always-on, AI-native home management platform” designed to help homeowners manage their properties more effectively. The app pulls publicly available data about a home—including soil composition, architectural style, and weather patterns—to provide proactive guidance on maintenance, insurance optimization, utilities, and seasonal care. For example, in Texas, the app can alert homeowners about foundation risks from intense summer heat and local clay soils, or recommend roof inspections after storms.
The platform tracks appliance warranties, monitors insurance rates annually, and helps homeowners identify savings opportunities. According to co-founder Ma, the app can recommend energy plans tailored to a home’s usage patterns, potentially saving homeowners 40% or more on energy costs. Homeowners can upload documents like inspection reports and warranties, allowing Hint to guide them through maintenance before problems become emergencies.
Stewart conceived the core idea decades ago. In the 1990s, she thought about building what she then called a “home organizer” and even discussed the concept with venture capitalist John Doerr of Kleiner Perkins, who told her the idea was “a little advanced” for what technology could accomplish at the time. “I never stopped thinking about it. I always kept my list of things I would put in an app,” Stewart said in an interview at her Katonah, New York farm, where she previewed the app for journalists.
Hint incorporates Stewart’s expertise from four decades of magazine articles and blogs, including her 2006 bestseller Martha Stewart’s Homekeeping Handbook, which has recently resurged in popularity on TikTok. The app will launch on desktop and iOS, with a free tier at launch and plans to monetize through referral fees from home services providers, insurers, and other partners. Homeowners can currently join the waitlist for priority access.
Stewart’s venture into AI-driven home management reflects her broader embrace of technology and new business ideas. Last fall, she launched Elm Biosciences, a skincare brand she had been developing for five years. In a recent TODAY Show interview, she emphasized her enthusiasm for AI and agentic technology. “We’re fully agentic—isn’t that the right word?” she asked, noting that she’s been learning about the technical side of the business. “I’m learning all this stuff. I know how many agents we have and all this stuff that’s going on.”
Sources
- Fortune — Martha Stewart as cofounder of Hint, app launch date next week, cofounders’ backgrounds, funding amount and investors, Stewart’s recollection of discussing the idea with Kleiner Perkins in the 1990s
- Realtor.com — Details on Hint’s functionality, energy savings potential, maintenance tracking, location-based recommendations, business model, Stewart’s expertise integration
- TODAY Show — Stewart’s comments on AI and agentic technology, her enthusiasm for the app
- Search results (multiple outlets) — App launch timing (summer 2026, next week from July 23), desktop and iOS availability, funding details, co-founder names and backgrounds
