Smart chatbot maker Gupshup acquires voice, video specialist Knowlarity

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Gupshup, the quirky-named San Francisco-based messaging platform maker that is putting smarts into customer-facing applications, has announced the acquisition of Knowlarity Communications for a reported $100 million. Knowlarity is a cloud communications service provider offering cloud telephony, AI-powered voice assistants, and speech analytics systems to more than 6,000 customers in 65 countries.

Gupshup, founded in 2004, provides a chatbot creation service, Teamchat, that allows developers to ideate, deploy, and publish highly customizable chatbots across more than 30 channels. 

Gupshup enables its users to communicate and share their short messages privately or publicly to engage and retain consumers. The platform handled more than 4 billion messages per month in 2021. 

Research has shown that consumers buying products online clearly prefer messaging via phone conversations. According to an OpenMarket nationwide survey polling millennials on their communication preferences, that segment of the population has an overwhelming affinity for texting. 

The acquisition of Knowlarity adds an important asset to Gupshup’s front-line Conversational Messaging suite, rounding out the company’s offerings in voice and video communication and complementing its pre-existing strength in RCS (rich communications services) and chatbot messaging.

Knowlarity operates in the voice-based Conversational Engagement market, which is poised to transform contact centers, IVR systems, and smart voice systems, accounting for a total addressable market of nearly $18 billion in 2024, according to Gartner Research.

Gupshup CEO and cofounder Beerud Sheth said that “Knowlarity is the clear market leader in voice. Their comprehensive product suite spanning cloud telephony and contact center automation, along with excellent customer traction, will further enhance Gupshup.”

The acquisition comes just months after Gupshup’s acquisition of Dotgo, a communications service platform.

Prior to starting the company, Sheth launched the freelancing platform Upwork, which went public on Nasdaq in October 2018.

The transaction is expected to close at the end of February 2022, subject to the completion of customary closing conditions. DC Advisory acted as the sole financial advisor to Knowlarity.

VentureBeat will update this story with additional information and context as soon as possible.

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