PANews reported on November 19th that Sphere, an AI-native tax engine startup, announced the completion of a $21 million Series A funding round, led by a16z, with participation from Y Combinator, Felicis, 20VC, and others. Sphere uses AI to automatically analyze global tax laws and automates end-to-end tax compliance for businesses expanding globally through over 100 local tax filing channels, earning it the moniker of "the tax version of Deel." The system is specifically designed for cross-border income compliance, aiming to enable businesses to "operate globally" from day one.