Chapel Hill software startup CData raises $350M from investors
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The skyline of downtown Chapel Hill. Photo illustration: Lindsey Bailey/Axios; photo: Town of Chapel Hill
CData Software, a Chapel Hill startup that helps companies manage their data across different apps and infrastructures, has raised $350 million from investors.
Why it matters: This is one of the largest fundraising efforts from a Triangle startup this year and could lead to significant hiring at the Chapel Hill company, CData CEO Amit Sharma told Axios.
Driving the news: The funding comes from the private equity company Warburg Pincus, the venture capital firm Accel and existing investor Updata.
- CData, which says it is profitable and nearing $100 million in recurring revenue, declined to share how the deal valued the company.
- But Reuters reported the company's round values at more than $800 million.
What it does: Founded in 2016, CData helps companies connect and manage data from a variety of sources, both internal and on the cloud, with applications.
- The company works with around 7,000 companies, including Office Depot, Holiday Inn and FedEx, helping them move data to cloud networks while remaining useable across their apps.
The big picture: CData's funding round seems to buck a trend. Startups in the Triangle have experienced a challenging last few years in terms of fundraising thanks to high interest rates.
What's next: CData has around 350 employees, mostly based in Chapel Hill, Sharma said. The company does hire remotely but prefers bringing in talent from the Triangle area or the East Coast.
- Sharma said CData will significantly expand its marketing and sales teams with the money and potentially use it to acquire other companies.
What they're saying: A rush to invest in artificial intelligence models using privately owned data is increasing interest in CData's services, Sharma said in an interview.
- "We believe that the business is at an inflection point where we need to double down just because the window around AI is opening up," he said.
- These companies' "ability to actually use AI with their proprietary data and data within the organization is the next level of growth, and we are part of that journey."