SmartAssistant, a provider of intelligent Digital Advice, has secured EUR5 million in Series A funding led by growth capital investor Beringea. The funds will further SmartAssistant’s mission to make Digital Advice ubiquitous and help people make smarter decisions.
SmartAssistant offers businesses a unique technology with a business-user friendly interface. This allows them to create intelligent, digital advisers that guide a customer’s decision-making online, on mobile and at the point of sale (POS). Whether buying a laptop, a kayak or a mobile data plan, SmartAssistant digital advisers engage users in a personalised dialogue and recommend products, services, and content based on their needs, thereby reducing choice overload, confusion, and indecision. The technology incorporates insight from crowdsourced data, automation features, and machine learning capabilities to optimise the process and improve its accuracy.
The innovative Software as a Service (SaaS) solution operates in virtually any language and has proven success in hundreds of product areas. It is used by retailers, brands and service providers of all sizes, among them Microsoft, Canon, and T-Mobile. SmartAssistant clients integrate the technology to make their real-time expert advice available wherever customers need support to make decisions. It enhances the digital customer journey and improves customer engagement as well as customer satisfaction across varied channels. The latest product developments include the implementation of interfaces to make SmartAssistant’s advice capabilities available via rising technologies such as chatbots and voice-enabled assistants.
The company received early backing from a group of angel investors including Ariel Luedi – now Chairman of the company – the former CEO of Hybris an e-commerce software technology company acquired by SAP in 2013. This latest round brings the total amount of funding that SmartAssistant has raised to EUR7.25 million to date. The money from this round will be used to continue the company’s global expansion and further growth of the US-based team.
“As consumers and buyers, we appreciate the accessibility of information that digitisation has provided. But it has also brought with it an overwhelming amount of choice, which is already transforming how people make decisions,” says Markus Linder, CEO, and Co-Founder at SmartAssistant. “Our technology simplifies decision-making and makes sure consumers and buyers get the best product or solution according to their specific needs. This personalised and needs-based approach ultimately helps our clients to become the go-to destination for expert advice within their domain of expertise. ”
“The success we’ve had to date is a strong testament to the market’s growing need for intelligent Digital Advice solutions, and the last quarters were another record period, which resulted in a doubling of year over year annual recurring revenues. With further international expansion one of our key goals, Beringea is the perfect partner to help us on the next part of our journey. The team has significant experience in working with businesses like ours and combined with its presence in the US, Beringea is perfectly placed to help us further increase our footprint in our largest market.”
SmartAssistant is now actively expanding its US-based sales team in New York City. It will continue to strengthen its freemium offering zuvoo.com and its global solution partner network.
Eyal Malinger, Investment Director at Beringea, says: “SmartAssistant’s universal appeal to companies across a broad set of industries, its proven track record in expanding internationally, and its already impressive client portfolio, are all clear indicators that C-suites are recognising the strong need to be more than mere providers in competitive and consolidation-prone markets. Becoming a customer’s trusted advisor is one of the few remaining key areas to compete and differentiate as total digitisation is only a matter of time. We’re delighted to be supporting SmartAssistant in the next phase of its promising journey, and to be working alongside a group of fantastic angel investors.”
