As any data-driven organization knows, making effective use of data can be a challenge. Even teams with analytics capabilities often struggle to fully leverage their information. According to a recent survey, under half of data leaders say their groups provide true value.
This issue inspired German computer scientist Michael Berthold. While consulting with businesses as a university professor, he regularly saw companies express a desire for a platform automating data processing and analysis. Along with colleagues Bernd Wiswedel and Thomas Gabriel, Berthold founded KNIME to address this gap.
KNIME’s open-source software allows users to visually build automated “workflows” integrating various data tasks. This includes loading, transforming, analyzing and exploring information regardless of source. The platform has since transitioned to a commercial model known as KNIME Hub.
Hub provides added security, governance and deployment capabilities for organizational workflows. Users can also access community-created templates. Over 400 paying customers now use KNIME, including numerous Fortune 500 firms. Annual recurring revenue has grown 30-40% annually since 2008 to around $32 million currently.
To maintain competitiveness, KNIME recently launched an AI assistant helping users navigate projects. Plans also involve expanding SaaS offerings for smaller businesses. Despite initial profitability, KNIME has now secured $30 million additional investment from Invus to further grow product capabilities and global customer base.
As data analytics become critical to organizational success, visual automation platforms like KNIME are helping more effectively leverage valuable information assets across sectors. This latest funding round will support scaling such solutions to even more companies worldwide.