The Washington, D.C. area has quietly become home to a growing cluster of rising data analytics companies and startups.
Over the past several years, the development of data analytics technology has become a trending topic nationally—with investors, entrepreneurs and a variety of companies from different industries looking for ways to make their businesses more efficient. And this tech deserves the attention it’s receiving.
Data analytics technology—and perhaps moreso the information it reveals—is especially important in that it has the potential to disrupt the way industries operate even outside of the tech sector. Unsurprisingly, this “disruption” is also worth quite a lot of money.
"we are seeing an influx of capital looking to fund analytic companies, frothy venture capital valuations and multiple exits"
As Cooley LLP partner Andy Lustig, who focuses on the D.C. tech scene, put it, “we are seeing an influx of capital looking to fund analytic companies, frothy venture capital valuations and multiple [positive] exits.” And while the reward for building an effective data analytics company continues to grow, the prominence of local data companies like TrackMaven and Clarabridge further shows—at least on a micro-level—its importance in relation to the overall market.
The D.C. area is especially unique though, Lustig says, because this innovation is being driven in part by an influx of technology talent.
“Specifically, data scientists, software developers and experts in cloud computing and storage transitioning out of the intelligence agencies. It is also being driven by a growing movement within the intelligence agencies to allow innovative data analytic capabilities that were previously only authorized for use within the federal government to enter the commercial arena,” Lustig told DC Inno.
Success in the technology sector is, at its core, dictated by a company’s ability to attract talented developers, strategists and visionaries.
The D.C. area is already proving that it has the data talent here to encourage the creation of analytics companies. The next step will be the development of this talent from the company-side and seeing if it can translate into the creation of even more local data startups.
Here are five rising D.C. area data analytics companies that are setting the tone:
1.) TrackMaven (Washington, D.C)
Founded in 2012, TrackMaven is led by George Washington University alum Allen Gannett. The company has raised more than $21 million from a cohort of returning investors that include local powerhouse New Enterprise Associates and Silicon Valley Bank. TrackMaven has created a data analytics platform for digital marketers that helps analyze content. By analyzing data from across multiple channels where a company is advertising, a user can identify in realtime the best opportunities for their outreach strategy. TrackMaven is actively hiring, as it just recently moved to a new office space to help overcome space restrictions. The new 22,000-square-foot location (1 Thomas Circle NW) is more than four times the size of TrackMaven’s old office.
2.) Clarabridge (Reston, Va.)
Clarabridge is cloud-based software company that has designed a “customer intelligence platform” to help companies aggregate, organize and understand the vast troves of customer data that they have stored. Clarabridge customers are able to use tools that encompass things like text analytics, customers surveys, social metrics and other forms of customer feedback, to better understand how their businesses can best market/advertise specific products. In May, Clarabridge acquired Ghent, Belgium-based Engagor, which effectively doubled their customer list. Engager had also developed a suite of customer engagement tools. “They’re [Engagor] very operational and we're very focused on analytics. Collectively we're much more powerful and can offer a lot more to clients,” CEO Sid Banerjee previously told DC Inno. Clarabridge is a later-stage company with more than 250 employees, which has raised more than $90 million in private investment.
3.) Syntasa (Herndon, Va.)
Syntasa’s customers include large corporate brands and clients that are looking for the best ways to improve their online businesses. Syntasa’s technology, developed by a team of former Department of Defense contractors, analyzes real-time customer data based on visitors who connect to a customer’s e-commerce website. By recording visitor metrics like page views, time spent, click-throughs, mouse activity and social media interaction, Syntasa’s products can provide brands with an organized and comprehensive front-end data report. The idea is to provide hard data to backup concrete web redesigns, product strategy and other business outreach. The company, which has been entirely self-funded to date, employs about 42 full-time employees and is growing. Syntasa was founded in March 2012 by CEO Jay Marwaha, formerly the President and CEO of Absolute Business Solutions Corp.
4.) Tahzoo (Washington, D.C.)
Founded in 2010, Tahzoo raised $1.1 million last November from a group of unnamed investors. The company describes itself as a “CX” (customer experience) agency, which helps businesses better target customers and retain business through the use of data analytics software and other consultancy tools. In 2014, Inc. magazine ranked the company 85th on its list of fastest-growing private companies. Then, in May, Tahzoo acquired Netherlands-based digital agency HintTech. As DC Inno previously reported, “the acquisition [made] Tahzoo, a customer experience agency headquartered near the convention center, the largest independent agency of its kind in the world.” Tahzoo's customers are provided with research, analysis and other content recommendations based on analysis done by the agency. These reports can lead to website redesigns or a change in managed services, for instance.
5.) WealthEngine (Bethesda, Md.)
Founded in 1991, WealthEngine caters to nonprofit organizations and financial services companies. WealthEngine’s products and services offer investment advice, enabled by analytics software, to help customers raise money. The information/tools can also be used to leverage preexisting data for marketing and other outreach purposes. WealthEngine’s software recognizes data surrounding “wealth indicators” and then helps identify links to prospective sales and/or fundraising targets. The tool is used by wealth managers and marketers. WealthEngine has raised more than $13 million to date from investors, including local players Novak Biddle Venture Partners, QED Investors and CIT Gap Fund. In April 2014, WealthEngine acquired BrightContext, the creators of software that powered scalable, cloud-based data streaming from 3rd party sources, TechCrunch reported.
