Afiniti

Afiniti International Holdings Ltd., also called Afiniti,[3] is an American multinational data and software company based in Washington, D.C.[2][4] Founded in 2005, Afiniti is focused on developing artificial intelligence for use in customer call centers.[2] With a 2017 valuation of $1.6 billion, the company is considered a unicorn.[2][5]

Afiniti
Private
IndustrySoftware development
GenreArtificial intelligence
Founded2005 in Washington, D.C., United States
FounderZia Chishti
HeadquartersWashington, D.C.
Key people
Zia Chishti (CEO), Thomas Inskip (CCO), Hassan Afzal (CTO), Phil Davis (CFO), Chris Farmer (CMO)[1]
Total equityUS $1.6 billion[2]
Number of employees
1,000[2] (2018)
Websiteafiniti.com

History

2005–2016

Afiniti was founded in 2005 in Washington, D.C. by Zia Chishti, a former Morgan Stanley investment banker who had previously co-founded Align Technology.[2][6] In 2008 the company submitted several patents related to matching caller data with computer models, which were granted in 2014.[7] The company confidentially filed for a potential future initial public offering (IPO) in late 2016.[5][8][9] Around that time Afiniti also introduced software to run phone numbers "through a variety of databases prior to when a call center agent picks up the phone." The system referred to around 100 databases to gather information on callers, including from public profiles such as Twitter. According to Fortune, the system operated on "the idea that it's possible, using thousands of call records, to determine which agents perform best with certain type of customers."[10]

2017–2018

According to The Wall Street Journal, by January 2017 the company had installed its artificial intelligence software in around 150 call centers for several dozen companies,[3] among them Caesars Entertainment Corporation and Sprint.[10] By April 2017 the company was valued at $1.6 billion and had board members such as John W. Snow and José Maria Aznar. That month the company closed a fourth round of venture funding,[5] bringing in $80 million[4] from investors such as GAM, McKinsey & Co, Elisabeth Murdoch, and John Browne. The round brought the company's total funding raised since its inception to $100 million.[5][11] Afiniti signed a deal with Huawei in September 2017[12] and Avaya in April 2018.[13]

In January 2018, Fortune included Afiniti on its list of the 100 companies "leading the way in A.I."[14] By June 2018, Afiniti was active in 18 countries and had 1,000 employees.[2] Afiniti moved its headquarters to a larger building in Washington, D.C. in July 2018.[2] It was featured on a Forbes list of exits to watch in 2018.[9] According to Chishti, the company saw 100 percent revenue growth each year between 2013 and 2017.[2]

Services and technology

According to the company, its software uses AI to help companies increase efficiency by "predicting interpersonal behavior"[11] between the callers and agents.[2] VentureBeat explains that "when a customer calls into a call center, Afiniti matches their phone number — either landline or cellphone — with any information tied to it from up to 100 databases. These databases carry purchase history, income, and other demographic information."[4][5][15] Data on customers is collected from the customers and from data brokers. Afiniti does not charge for the software or service itself, but instead takes a percentage of any proven revenue increases resulting from use of the software.[2]

Key people

Afiniti's structure includes a board of directors, advisory board, management team and "local leadership" team.

Zia Chishti serves as CEO,[1] while other executives and staff include former politician Wyatt Roy.[16] Chishti also serves as chairman of the board, and the six other board members consist of Mohammed Khaishgi, Larry Babbio, John Sununu, Jose Maria Aznar, Hasnain Aslam, and John W. Snow.[1]

Among the members of Afiniti's advisory board are Tom Glocer, Michael Mullen, Peter Bonfield, Lord Browne,[17] Ivan Seidenberg, Simon Lee, Andrew Knight, Andrea Wong, Elisabeth Murdoch, Nobuyuki Idei, Richard Gephardt, Laura Tyson, Will Greenwood, Rod Phillips, Robert Kimmitt, Federico Ghizzoni, Fred Singer, Fabio Corsico, Simon Murray, Brad Brown, Francois Fillon[1] and David Cameron.[18]

See also

References
  1. "Management". Afiniti. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  2. "Meet D.C.'s little-known artificial intelligence firm — and its plans to go public". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2018-10-11.
  3. Ryan Knutson (January 10, 2017). "Many Call Centers Know a Surprising Amount About You". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  4. "Sales AI company Afiniti valued at $1.6 billion, files for IPO". VentureBeat. 2017-04-14. Retrieved 2018-10-11.
  5. Matt Marshall (April 14, 2017). "Sales AI company Afiniti valued at $1.6 billion, files for IPO". VentureBeat.
  6. "Born in the US, raised in Pakistan: Man who founded two billion-dollar companies | The Express Tribune". The Express Tribune. 2017-12-07. Retrieved 2018-10-11.
  7. "History". Afinity. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  8. "Bloomberg - Are you a robot?". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2018-10-11.
  9. Mergermarket. "Top 30 Tech Exits To Watch In 2018". Forbes. Retrieved 2018-10-11.
  10. Jeff John Roberts (January 10, 2017). "How Companies Use Your Social Media Data When Taking Your Call". Fortune.
  11. "This company founded by a Pakistani is valued at $1.6 billion". The Express Tribune. April 16, 2017. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  12. Faseeh Mangi (October 2, 2017). "Tycoon Takes Investors Heli Skiing to Show Them Pakistan's Safe". Bloomberg. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  13. "Avaya and Afiniti Partner to Bring Unique and Proven, AI-Driven Behavioral Pairing to the Contact Center". Avaya. April 24, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  14. "These 100 Companies Are Leading the Way in A.I." Fortune. January 8, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  15. Knutson, Ryan (2017-01-06). "Call Centers May Know a Surprising Amount About You". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2018-10-11.
  16. "Wyatt Roy's grand new adventure in machine learning". Financial Review. February 2, 2017. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  17. "Princess Beatrice wins her first high-profile client as a business matchmaker". The Telegraph. February 18, 2017. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  18. "David Cameron takes job with US artificial intelligence firm". The Guardian. May 31, 2019. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
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