DataFox

DataFox operated a subscription company-intelligence platform that used natural language processing and machine learning to read public sources — company websites, blogs, news articles, press releases and government filings — and convert unstructured information into structured records and growth signals on millions of public and private businesses. Customers used the data to prioritize target accounts, source leads and find acquisition targets, with account scoring and CRM data enrichment layered on top of the underlying company database.

The database grew from roughly 600,000 companies tracked in 2015 to about 2 million during the company's mid-stage period and 2.8 million public and private businesses at the time of the Oracle acquisition, expanding by approximately 1.2 million records a year. AI-sourced insights were verified by a team of human analysts, described in company materials as 100+ analysts, with earlier analyst work performed in the United States and the Philippines. The company was headquartered in San Francisco, California, after earlier operating from Palo Alto.

On October 22, 2018, Oracle announced an agreement to acquire DataFox, positioning the data engine alongside its ERP, CX, HCM and SCM cloud application lines. Oracle said it was not committing to a specific longer-term product roadmap but would continue the product for existing customers; deal terms were not disclosed.

Founding story

Bastiaan Janmaat worked about four years as an investment analyst at Goldman Sachs in London, manually researching high-growth companies. After moving to the United States for an MBA at Stanford's Graduate School of Business, he spent time in the computer science department and connected with classmate Mike Dorsey, who had also worked in finance, and with computer scientists who could automate the research work. Four co-founders launched DataFox in 2013 to automate business intelligence with natural language processing; the first prototype was built in about 30 days.

Business model

B2B software-as-a-service sold on subscription. Early self-serve pricing started at $49 per month and later tiers were listed at $600, $1,200 and up to $2,400 per month, with the top tier offering unlimited usage and lower tiers capping tracked companies at 1,000 and 12,000 respectively. The company later removed public pricing, moved to annual-only contracts and hired sales representatives, shifting to enterprise deals worth roughly $10,000 to $200,000 per year.

Recurring subscription fees for platform access and data, initially monthly and later annual contracts; average client spend was described in 2015 as around $10,000 a year as a starting point, with negative churn reported at that time as seats were added faster than cancellations.

Traction

Database coverage of about 600,000 companies in 2015, roughly 2 million during the mid-stage period and 2.8 million at acquisition, growing by around 1.2 million records annually. Headcount rose from 15 in 2015 to about 40. Enterprise contracts ranged from $10,000 to $200,000 per year, and TechCrunch reported total funding of just under $19 million with a $33 million valuation as of January 2017.

Latest developments

Oracle announced on October 22, 2018 that it had agreed to acquire DataFox, with the transaction subsequently closed. Oracle stated the data engine and derived business content would enrich its cloud applications with AI-driven company-level data and that the existing product would continue for current customers, without a committed long-term roadmap. Terms were not disclosed.