Peak could potentially help its new owner bolster revenue growth. The two companies already had partnerships prior to the acquisition, and the idea is that the deal will give UiPath more opportunities to cross-sell its wider set of solutions to Peak’s customers, as well as capture more of Peak’s overall revenue.
UiPath got its start in robotic process automation — “software robots” that let businesses run more routine and rote work in automated flows. The company saw unprecedented growth as a startup. “I’ve never seen an enterprise company grow this fast,” one of its investors told us at one point. That growth catapulted UiPath to a valuation of $35 billion when it was still private.
That growth, in hindsight, may well have spelled out the appetite for the AI that was just around the corner. But strictly speaking, UiPath’s RPA was not AI. It was only later that it started figuring out how AI fit into that picture.
In contrast, Peak’s been in an interesting position, catching on to the opportunity to build AI assistants for businesses years before OpenAI hit the market and sparked a wider conversation, and a lot of hype, around how AI would impact the world of business.
But being early also meant that AI was a harder sell for the startup at times. In its account filing with Companies House, Peak noted that would-be customers saw AI as a “gamble” but that perception had started to shift over 2023, and it was picking up new interest specifically in the U.S. manufacturing sector. With Romania-founded UiPath now effectively a U.S. company, this will potentially give it a clearer channel into that market.
“The ability to seamlessly integrate decision intelligence with automation presents an unprecedented opportunity to redefine how businesses operate,” Peak’s three founders, Richard Potter (CEO), David Leitch (CIO) and Atul Sharma (CTO), said in a message today announcing the acquisition.
Seamless integration and a willing audience of buyers is the pitch, at least. Whether it bears out is the hope.
“With the acquisition of Peak, we are accelerating our mission to strengthen our vertical AI solutions strategy,” said Dines in a statement. “When combined with the UiPath platform, Peak’s exceptional purpose-built AI applications will enhance our ability to provide solutions that optimize industry-specific use cases and deliver incredible value to customers.”
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