O9 Solutions, one of the DFW’s fastest-growing tech companies and one of the few tech unicorns in the region, announced on Wednesday that it secured a $295 million investment. This funding values o9 Solutions at $2.7 billion.
The company was co-founded in 2009 by Sanjiv Sidhu and Chakri Gottemukkala, two tech entrepreneurs who had previous experience in supply chain management. When the duo launched o9 Solutions, they developed an AI-powered supply chain demand and planning platform named “The Digital Brain.” The platform helps companies in different industries — from retail to automotive — use data and analytics to predict supply chain risks and plan accordingly.
In normal times, the platform would be incredibly useful, but in 2020 it became vital as fissures in the supply chain began to widen.
“Demand and supply volatility and complexity has been growing and the pandemic has only accelerated the challenges companies face in meeting customer service and financial goals,” Gottemukkala, CEO of o9 Solutions, said in a prepared statement. “At the same time, there is significant pressure on boards and executives from customers and employees to also drive meaningful improvements in sustainability goals. And we believe that o9 is poised perfectly to help companies deal with these megatrends with a differentiated, proven platform.”
The demand for o9’s platform also caught the attention of several investors. In April of 2020, o9 raised a $100 million private equity investment from KKR that secured the company’s unicorn status. Prior to KKR’s investment o9 had brought in $22 million in outside funding, according to Crunchbase.
According to the company, the recent $295 million equity investment was received from the following VC firms: General Atlantic, BeyondNetZero, Generation Investment Management and KKR.
“We believe that o9 is uniquely positioned at the intersection of technology, supply chain and sustainability,” General Atlantic’s Tanzeen Syed said in a prepared statement. “The business fits squarely within our thises at General Atlantic and BeyondNetZero to support companies that are leveraging innovation to tackle some of the most pressing issues in the world. O9 helps large organizations transform their costly, complex and resource-intensive supply chains into profitable and environmentally sound models — playing a critical role in enabling them to work toward net-zero targets.”
With the new mega investment, o9 will accelerate the growth of its platform in new markets and continue promoting research and development. There are currently several open positions on o9’s website ranging from engineers and technical architects to data scientists and account executives.
