Mubadala Backs Software Startup People.ai in New Funding Round
Mubadala Backs Software Startup People.ai in New Funding Round
(Bloomberg) -- Sales software startup People.ai has reached a $1.1 billion valuation with a $100 million funding round backed by new investors Mubadala Investment Co. and Akkadian Ventures.
People.ai founder and Chief Executive Officer Oleg Rogynskyy said in an interview that the company’s software is used by companies including Zoom Technologies Inc. to track best practices for sales people.
“We give customers the ability to have data on what their team is doing right now and what makes the best employees so good,” Rogynskyy said.
People.ai’s software can record and analyze employees’ calendars and phone calls, helping companies determine, for example, the best number of clients for one salesperson to cover. The software also helps companies boost their bottom line, he added.
People.ai was last valued at $400 million in 2019, according to data provider PitchBook.
People.ai, based in Redwood City, California, generates revenue in the “tens of millions” though it isn’t yet profitable, Rogynskyy said. The company has patents on AI technology that help its software filter out personal calls or emails, to help avoid violations of employee privacy.
Mike Dinsdale, a managing director at Akkadian Ventures, said that he’s seen how difficult it can be for companies to forecast sales. People.AI “fills that gap for management teams,” he said.
“At the end of the day, every company is in business to drive revenue,” said Dinsdale, who has been a chief financial officer at DocuSign, DoorDash and Gusto.
Mubadala partner Abdulla AlBanna said People.AI stands out in a crowded marketplace for sales software. He added that he believes “there are going to be multiple winners” because the market opportunity is so large.
A prior business started by Rogynskyy exited through a sale, but he said he’s interested in having People.ai become a public company one day. He said he welcomed Mubadala’s investment partly because it’s a large crossover investor, which means it has public holdings, too.
Existing investors in People.ai including Iconiq Capital and Lightspeed Venture Partners are also participating in the funding round.
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