Data Storytelling Innovator Narrative Science Acquired by Salesforce

Data Storytelling Innovator Narrative Science Acquired by Salesforce

Narrative Science reported on Wednesday that its acquisition by Salesforce – and integration into Saleforce’s Tableau team is complete. First announced last month, the closing of the acquisition this week will combine Narrative Science’s automated data storytelling capabilities with Tableau’s analytics platform.

“Bringing the Narrative Science award-winning, world-leading AI in analytics team and their innovations to Tableau will help us reach millions more people who are underserved with data,” Tableau President and CEO Mark Nelson wrote on the company’s blog this week. “It will help close the data literacy gap, reimagine an entirely new analytics experience, and set people up for success in this digital-first world.”

Salesforce acquired Tableau Software in 2019 in a deal that combined “the world’s #1 CRM with the world’s #1 analytics platform” Tableau announced in a press release that August. The goal of the acquisition was to enable Salesforce customers to “unlock even greater value from their data” using Tableau’s combination of diverse visualization, analytics, and AI. By adding Narrative Science’s data storytelling technology, Tableau and Narrative Science move closer to their shared goal of “making data more available to everyone, everywhere.”

A Finovate alum since 2013, Narrative Science is a leading provider of automated business analytics and natural language communication technology. Founded in 2010 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, the company is an innovator in the field of data storytelling. As a strategy for delivering business intelligence, data storytelling transcends both data visualization and static dashboards by translating insights into easy-to-understand stories and giving business users a personalized data digest. The company’s Lexio solution, its latest iteration unveiled in the fall of 2020, serves both businesspeople who require data insights in order to do their jobs, but do not have the time or skills to become data analysts, as well as leaders of analytics teams who need to ensure that insights are accessible to and understandable by employees who can translate them into action.

“Unlike today’s typical BI tools, Lexio anticipates what employees need to know so they can make faster and better data-driven decisions,” Narrative Science co-founder and CEO Stuart Frankel said. “Data without context is useless, and Lexio brings that context and understanding to every single employee in plain language and in a consumer-like experience.”

As of this fall, Narrative Science has raised nearly $43 million in funding from investors including Jump Capital, Sapphire, and Battery Ventures. In October, the company earned a #1 ranking in Crain’s Chicago Business Most Innovative Companies 2021 roster. Over the summer, Narrative Science’s Lexio won the “AI-Based Analytics Innovation Award” at the AI Breakthrough Awards.


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Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Plaid Raises $250 Million Series C Round Led by Mary Meeker.
  • Bill.com Achieves NACHA Certification.

Around the web

  • Narrative Science introduces its new language-based augmented analytics product, Lexio, in beta.
  • Currencies Direct taps Ripple’s xCurrent for real-time remittances to India.
  • AlphaPoint to support Stellar Lumens.
  • Motive Partners acquires majority stake in Finantix.
  • Camden National Bank further leverages Jack Henry relationship to support demand for growth, innovation.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Envestnet | Yodlee Doubles Down on the Developer Experience.
  • Braintree Merchants Can Now Accept Samsung Pay.

Around the web

  • eToro sets up a free bitcoin ATM to celebrate Bitcoin’s 10th anniversary.
  • Tradeshift announces new app from kompany to reduce supply chain risk.
  • Crain’s Chicago Business names Narrative Science on its list of most innovative companies.
  • Fenergo listed on Deloitte’s Technology Fast 50 Ireland list.
  • iSignThis’ ISXPay receives Bank Institution Code, will be able to accept deposits directly as a monetary financial institution as of December 4.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Finovate Alums Earn Spots on insideBIGDATA IMPACT 50 List

Finovate Alums Earn Spots on insideBIGDATA IMPACT 50 List

It is no surprise to see companies like NVIDIA, Intel, Dell EMC, and SAS at the top of the quarterly insideBIGDATA IMPACT 50 roster. But what caught our eye was the handful of Finovate alums that won recognition on insideBIGDATA’s review of companies that are “making waves in the technology areas of big data, data science, machine learning, AI, and deep learning.”

“Our in-box is filled each day with new announcements, commentaries, and insights about what’s driving the success of our industry so we’re in a unique position (to) publish our quarterly IMPACT 50 List of the most important movers and shakers in our industry,” Daniel D. Gutierrez, managing editor and resident data scientist of insideBIGDATA wrote in an article accompanying the announcement.

What does it take to make the list? Gutierrez explained that the roster consists of companies that “exhibit technology leadership, strength of offering, proven innovation, positivity of message, quality perception in the enterprise, intensity and frequency of social media buzz, high profile of members of the C-suite, and in the case of public companies: positive financial indicators and stock price, and so much more!”

Our five honored Finovate alums are below. To see the full list of 50 “DataTech” companies, visit insideBIGDATA.

#9 Google (Europe 2018, Fall 2011): Appearing first on the Finovate stage with its Google Advisor solution and as recently as this spring in partnership with KBC Bank Ireland, Google is in the top ten of insideBIGDATA’s Impact 50 list. Google needs little introduction as one of the companies that has done the most to bring the benefits of data to technology consumers via solutions like Search, Maps, Google Play, and its Chrome browser. Founded in 1998, Google is headquartered in Mountain View, California.

#14 Kinetica (Europe 2018, Fall 2017):  Founded in 2009 and headquartered in San Francisco, California, Kinetica enables financial institutions to conduct on-demand risk calculations using the most up-to-date data with “sub-second speed.” High frequency trading firms and traditional asset managers alike can leverage Kinetica’s technology to measure risk, identify customer behavioral patterns, and locate up-sell opportunities. With $63 million in funding, Kinetica includes fellow insideBIGDATA Impact 50 members Dell EMC, NVIDIA, and Google Cloud Platform among its partners.

#15 MapD (Spring 2017, Fall 2016): Developer of the world’s fastest open source SQL engine, MapD harnesses GPUs to deliver extreme speed at scale. Based in San Francisco, MapD provides users with powerful data visualizations made possible by the technology’s ability to query and render billions of rows of data in milliseconds. MapD’s technology originated from research conducted at the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL). Todd Mostak is CEO of the company, which was founded in 2013.

#40 Narrative Science (Fall 2013, Spring 2013): Specialists in Advanced Natural Language Processing (NLP), Narrative Science builds solutions that enable financial institutions to analyze, understand, communicate, and act upon their data quickly and efficiently. The company’s technology can turn ordinary numeric and symbolic data and visualizations into “intelligent narratives” that express insights and context in language that is indistinguishable from that of a human author. Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, and founded in 2010, Narrative Science has raised more than $43 million in funding. Stuart Frankel is CEO.

#46 TIBCO (Asia 2013, Asia 2012): Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Palo Alto, California, TIBCO is a leader in integration, API management, and analytics. The company’s TIBCO Connected Intelligence Cloud gives enterprise users access to a unified suite of services including the company’s low-code development platform, TIBCO Cloud Live Apps. The company was acquired by Vista Equity Partners in September 2014 in a deal valued at $4.3 billion. TIBCO made headlines earlier this year with the appointment of a new CTO and COO.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Dynamics Leverages Sprint’s Wireless Network for New IoT Connected Card.
  • Kyckr Lands Global Payment Provider Client.

Around the web

  • Taulia announces milestone, accelerating $1 billion in invoices in a single day.
  • Klarna extends partnership with ACI Worldwide, now reaching 10 major markets including the U.S. and U.K.
  • Marquette Bank ($1.6 billion in assets) builds on existing relationship with Baker Hill by adding risk management, loan origination and other solutions.
  • Datanami highlights Narrative Science’s natural language processing tech.
  • Disruptor Daily names eToro, Motif, Kapitall among 9 companies to watch in 2018.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • BankBazaar Receives $30 Million in Funding Round Led by Experian.
  • Feedzai Secures $50 Million in New Funding.
  • BlueVine Lands $130 Million in Debt Financing.
  • Sensibill Brings Receipt Management to Royal Bank of Scotland’s Business Banking Customers.

Around the web

  • Entersekt hires Sherif Samy as SVP for North American operations.
  • Visa and Billtrust team up to streamline B2B payment reconciliation and support automation of virtual card payments.
  • PayPal announces Vemno is now payment option at more than two million U.S. retailers.
  • Narrative Science wins Microsoft Office 2017 App Award for Best Business Value.
  • TransCard partners with ExpenseAnywhere to Deliver Automated Payment Process Management Solutions.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • National Bank of Canada Joins SecureKey’s Digital Identity Network.
  • P2Binvestor Launches Bank Partnership Program.
  • doxo Surpasses 30,000 Payable Billers on its Platform
  • Contextual Commerce Platform Omnyway Raises $12.75 Million in Series A.

Around the web

  • ConnectOne Bank ($4.7 billion in assets) to deploy nCino’s Bank Operating System.
  • ACI Worldwide partners with European clearing and settlement firm, STET, to bring real-time payment solution to PSPs.
  • FICO reports increased accuracy of its Enterprise Security Score when it comes to predicting data breaches.
  • Finastra moves its payments solution to the cloud via Microsoft Azure.
  • Trusted Knight partners with eTECH Channel.
  • CloudTrade and Taulia partner to enable businesses to transition to paperless invoicing.
  • iSignThis’ ISXPay initiates further Australian card acquiring/processing contracts.
  • BancPass announces license agreement with mobile tolling provider PayTollo.
  • EFL a finalist in the 2017 MIT Inclusive Innovation Challenge.
  • Datanami article on bot technology features insights from Narrative Science CEO Stuart Frankel.
  • MoneyMarketing highlights SpyCloud in a look at the safety of life and pensions company data.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Narrative Science Raises $11 Million Series E

Narrative Science Raises $11 Million Series E

NarrativeScience_homepage_April2017

In a round co-led by Sapphire Ventures and Jump Capital, advanced natural-language generation technology innovator Narrative Science has raised $11 million. The Series E round takes the company’s total funding to more than $40 million. Quoted in Crain’s Chicago Business, Sapphire Ventures partner Jai Das wasted few words in explaining Narrative Science’s edge. “People like to read,” Das said. In other words, it’s all about the Advanced NLG.

Narrative Science specializes in using advanced natural-language generation technology to turn ordinary numeric and symbolic data and visualizations into what the company calls “intelligent narratives.” These narratives express in language indistinguishable from that of a human author all the relevant insights and context from the chosen data. This data can take a variety of forms, including business intelligence reports, customer communications, and regulatory filings – any information that is based on quantifiable data can be turned into an intelligent narrative. “People who don’t have skill with spreadsheets, people who might not have skills with visualizations … they can still get to the insights within that data,” Kris Hammon, Narrative Science Chief Scientist explained during the company’s demo at FinovateFall.

Founded in 2010 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, Narrative Science demonstrated its Quill Financial solution at FinovateFall 2013. The company, which celebrated its seventh anniversary in April, has been on a partnership spree in recent months. A deal with Sisense in February will put Narrative Science’s Narratives for Business Intelligence API to work for the company’s business intelligence technology, Sisense Everywhere. Also in February, Narrative Science partnered with FactSet to integrate automated portfolio commentary within FactSet’s analytics and client reporting platform. We featured Narrative Science in our look at artificial intelligence in fintech back at the beginning of the year. Stuart Frankel is CEO.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Finovate Debuts: unblu Delivers an In-Person Customer Experience Online.
  • Check out our latest Sneak Peeks of upcoming FinovateSpring demos from Newchip, IBM Trusteer, Divy, CallVU, Finicity, GoodData, & NCR Corporation.
  • Narrative Science Raises $11 Million Series E.

Around the web

  • MaxMyInterest members gain access to increased FDIC insurance and competitive yields on cash balances courtesy of new partnership with UFB Direct.
  • Bahrain-based Bank ABC goes live with omni-channel digital banking service using Backbase’s platform.
  • Revolut joins forces with UK online mortgage broker, Trussle, enabling prospective homebuyers to begin the application process on mobile phones.
  • PayPal teams with Android to launch a new way to pay.
  • Lending Club launches mobile app for investors.
  • Handpoint launches analytics dashboard.
  • ProfitStars and Tyfone partner to offer digital banking and billpay solution.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • SWITCH Lands $400,000 Angel Investment.

On FinDEVr.com

Around the web

  • Customers can now host Actiance Vantage on Microsoft Azure
  • Handpoint launches EMV Tip Adjustment feature for MPOS.
  • Financial Times reports: Starling Bank strikes money transfer deal with TransferWise
  • ShopKeep expands into online ordering and delivery with ChowBOT acquisition.
  • Narrative Science launches Narratives for Business Intelligence API.
  • Strands to power PFM for Kenya’s largest bank, Commercial Bank of Africa.
  • Citi introduces new mobile passcode solution for its Treasury and Trade clients. See Citi at FinDEVr New York next week.
  • BBVA to focus on identity, AI, and “fintech for companies” in ninth installment of its Open Talent innovation competition.
  • Cachet Financial Solutions aims to raise more than $9 million in initial public offering this week.
  • Following its platform limit announced in December, Zopa has set up a waiting list for new prospective investors.
  • Capital One Financial Corporation appoints Amy Lenander as UK CEO.
  • Putnam-Greene Financial Corporation to deploy core banking technology from Fiserv. Join Fiserv in New York next week for FinDEVr New York.
  • PaySwag to power mobile loyalty and instant rewards to the underbanked for Sionic Mobile.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Barclaycard Brings the Ka-Ching to Bling in New Wearables Payment Partnerships. See Barclaycard at FinDEVr in New York this month.
  • Excited to see Finicity at FinDEVr New York on March 21 and 22. Check out our interview with Co-Founder & EVP Nick Thomas.
  • Excited to see NuCypher at FinDEVr New York on March 21 and 22. Check out our interview with CEO & Co-Founder MacLane Wilkison.

On FinDEVr.com

  • Check out this week’s FinDEVr APIntelligence.

Around the web

  • Arxan Technologies completes the Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 140-2 validation process from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
  • Credit Sesame launches new service that pre-qualifies members for credit cards.
  • Sisense and Narrative Science partner to Merge BI and AI.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Narrative Science Brings Automated Portfolio Commentary to FactSet Platform

Narrative Science Brings Automated Portfolio Commentary to FactSet Platform

NarrativeScience_AssetManagement

The new partnership between advanced natural language generation specialist, Narrative Science, and investment analytics service provider, FactSet, will add automated portfolio commentary to the latter’s analytics and client-reporting platform.

Calling FactSet’s platform an “ideal match” for advanced NLG technology, Narrative Science COO Nick Beil said the integration would “reduce time-to-market, streamline client reporting, and raise the bar for prompt and comprehensive service.” Vice President of Analytics for FactSet, Ali Stewart added that with client reporting being a “rapidly evolving area of the market,” technologies such as those developed by Narrative Science are providing what Stewart called “a truly client-centric, cost-effective customer reporting solution.” Empowering investment managers with automated portfolio commentary, the new integration will enable companies to scale their reporting efforts to serve a larger and broader client base – and to do so within the monthly and/or quarterly reporting cycles customers and regulators demand.

In an infographic at the Narrative Science website, the company compares the current practice of creating portfolio commentary – from sourcing internal talent or finding able freelancers through the process of data access, drafting and reviewing, and publishing and distribution – to the process as run by the combination of solutions from Narrative Science and FactSet technology. What takes a team of human authors and editors as much as four work-weeks to accomplish is completed by FactSet Portfolio Analysis and Narrative Science’s Quill Portfolio Commentary in a matter of seconds.

Founded in 2010 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, Narrative Science demonstrated Quill Financial at FinovateFall 2013. Forging partnerships with Deloitte last October and with Franklin Templeton Investments last September, Narrative Science launched Narratives for Tableau back in August. The company has raised more than $29 million in funding and includes Battery Ventures, In-Q-Tel, Jump Capital, and Sapphire Ventures among its investors. We highlighted Narrative Science’s technology in our overview of artificial intelligence and fintech last month. Stuart Frankel is founder and CEO.