ON24
Acquired506 employees on LinkedIn · 8 known investors
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ON24 provides a digital engagement platform that uses AI to turn webinars, content hubs, and virtual events into personalized content journeys for B2B sales and marketing teams. The platform generates first-party engagement data and AI-created content to drive pipeline and revenue.
Also known as NewsDirect Inc. · ON24, Inc. · ONTF
Founders & leadership
Investors · 8
Company profile
researched Aug 2026ON24, Inc. is a San Francisco-headquartered cloud software company that develops and sells webinar, virtual conferencing, content hub and landing page applications delivered as a service to marketing and sales teams at B2B organizations. The platform is positioned as an intelligent engagement system that combines first-party digital experiences with personalization and content, and it supports use cases including demand generation, event management, product marketing, customer and client relations, partner enablement and professional certification.
The company expanded its offerings to include generative AI services in 2023, launching an AI-powered optimization suite and, between June 2023 and January 2024, its Analytics and Content Engine (ACE). Engagement captured through ON24 experiences is converted into first-party data and analytics that customers use to qualify leads, prioritize follow-up and measure pipeline contribution.
ON24 listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker ONTF following its February 2021 IPO and remained public until Cvent completed its acquisition of the company on April 1, 2026, at which point ON24 became a privately held part of Cvent's event and webinar portfolio.
Founding story
Founded in 1998 as NewsDirect Inc. by Csaba Fikker, Bill Bales and Nina Chen to distribute internet-based video press releases; Sharat Sharan was hired as CEO after an initial investment and the company was renamed ON24 in 1999.
Business model
ON24 sells its webinar, virtual event, content hub and landing page applications to businesses as a software-as-a-service platform, with AI-based analytics and content capabilities layered on the core engagement products.
Traction
Company materials reported service to over 1,900 companies worldwide, with customers engaging an average of 4 million professionals per month and a total of 2.5 billion minutes per year. The February 2021 IPO generated gross proceeds of approximately $492.3 million.
Latest developments
ON24 entered a definitive agreement on December 30, 2025 to be acquired by Cvent in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $400 million, or $8.10 per share, a roughly 62% premium to the November 10, 2025 closing price. Cvent completed the acquisition on April 1, 2026, ending ON24's public listing and stating plans to continue investing in the ON24 platform with a focus on AI, reliability and compliance.
▸Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market, geography, history
Market position
ON24 has been recognized in webinar and web events software categories, including Frost & Sullivan market leadership awards (2009, 2010, 2012, 2014), G2 Grid Leader placements for Enterprise Webinars from 2017 through 2025, and TrustRadius Top Rated awards from 2019 through 2025. Cvent described the company as a trusted enterprise-grade webinar and digital engagement platform whose capabilities complement its own event technology.
Technology
The platform uses HTTP-based live streaming (HLS) to deliver live webinars and virtual events at 2500k and 300k video bit rates, and integrates with marketing automation platforms such as HubSpot, Zapier and Workato as well as CRM systems. Generative AI capabilities were added from 2023, including the Analytics and Content Engine (ACE) and an AI-powered optimization suite.
Go-to-market
B2B enterprise marketing, sales, customer success and event teams. Reported customers include 3 of the 6 largest global software companies, 4 of the 5 top global asset management firms, 3 of the 6 largest global pharmaceutical companies and 3 of the 5 largest global industrial companies.
Geography
Headquartered in San Francisco, California, with offices across North America, EMEA and APAC. The company has operations in the United States and affiliates in the United Kingdom, Australia, Singapore and Japan, and serves customers worldwide.
History
The company was founded in 1998 by Csaba Fikker, Bill Bales and Nina Chen as NewsDirect Inc., intended as a distribution center for internet-based video press releases. After an initial investment, the founders and board hired Sharat Sharan as CEO, and in 1999 the company rebranded to ON24 with a focus on online financial news streaming. Following the 2001 dot-com bust it concentrated solely on its webcasting platform and discontinued its news operation in August 2002. Global expansion began in 2006 across the US, UK, Australia, Singapore and Spain, and in 2008 it launched the ON24 Virtual Show virtual event platform covering trade shows and conferences. ON24 completed an IPO in February 2021 on the NYSE, added generative AI services from 2023, and agreed in December 2025 to be acquired by Cvent, with the deal closing on April 1, 2026.
Compiled by commissioned research from 6 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.
Competitors · 5
by search overlap
Companies competing with ON24 for the same Google search keywords, organic and paid, via search-intersection analysis.
Timeline · 9
launches, deals, and filingsCvent announced completion of the acquisition, adding ON24's enterprise webinar and AI-powered engagement capabilities to its event management platform and stating plans to continue investing in the ON24 platform.
$400M source ↗
All-cash transaction for total consideration of approximately $400 million; ON24 shareholders to receive $8.10 per share, a ~62% premium to the November 10, 2025 closing price and a 51% premium to the 90-day VWAP. Unanimously approved by ON24's board and expected to close in the first half of 2026, after which ON24 would be delisted and become privately held.
$400M source ↗
ACE was launched between June 2023 and January 2024 as part of ON24's AI-powered services.
ON24 completed an IPO of 9,845,069 shares of common stock at $50.00 per share, generating gross proceeds of approximately $492.3 million; shares trade as NYSE: ONTF.
$492.3M source ↗
Expanded the company's focus to include trade shows, conferences and events.
Following the 2001 dot-com bust the company concentrated solely on its webcasting platform and shut its news unit in August 2002.
The company, founded in 1998 as NewsDirect Inc., rebranded to ON24 and focused on online financial news streaming media after hiring Sharat Sharan as CEO.
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
In the news
▸Research sources · 6
primary sources listed
- ON24 - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org · web
6 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does ON24 do?
- ON24 is a San Francisco-based B2B webinar, virtual event and AI-powered digital engagement platform, acquired by Cvent in 2026.
- Who founded ON24?
- ON24 was founded by Sharat Sharan.
- Who are ON24's investors?
- ON24's investors include Band of Angels, Canaan Partners, MidCap Financial Investment, Rho Ventures, Second Alpha Partners, Skagerak Capital, US Venture Partners, Goldman Sachs.