TL;DR:
- Daniil Bratchenko founded Integration.app to address the challenge of seamless integration of SaaS apps and services.
- Many enterprises struggle with integrating software due to the time-consuming nature of building integrations.
- Salesforce’s MuleSoft survey indicates that 90% of companies face integration issues, with 44% unable to integrate apps with existing systems.
- Integration.app uses large language models to automate integration processes, enabling rapid connector development.
- The startup recently secured $3.5 million in funding and plans to expand its team and market presence.
- The iPaaS sector, valued at over $3.7 billion, is witnessing increased demand.
- Integration.app’s innovative approach and efficiency improvements make it a competitive player in the market.
Main AI News:
In the world of modern business, the seamless integration of software applications and services has become a paramount concern for enterprises. It was Daniil Bratchenko, an early member of DataRobot, the prominent AI and data science platform, who first recognized this persistent challenge. Despite the plethora of tools available for creating integrations between SaaS applications and services, there remained a significant disconnect in their harmonious interaction.
Bratchenko emphasized the pivotal role integrations play in a company’s IT environment, particularly when evaluating new software acquisitions. The concern centers on how well the new system can seamlessly integrate with existing applications. Unfortunately, the arduous task of building the numerous integrations requested by a diverse customer base consumes valuable engineering hours, diverting resources from developing core features.
Indeed, Bratchenko’s assertions resonate with a recent survey conducted by Salesforce’s MuleSoft. While it’s worth noting that MuleSoft sells app integration tools, the survey revealed that almost 90% of companies encounter integration challenges with existing systems. For 20% of respondents, integration is a time-consuming ordeal, and 44% have faced situations where integrating apps with existing systems proved unfeasible.
Considering the average company employs approximately 130 apps, as reported by Statista, the magnitude of this problem quickly escalates to an unmanageable and seemingly insurmountable level.
In pursuit of a solution to the integration dilemma plaguing SaaS applications, Bratchenko, who previously sold his company Kionobaza.tv (a movie recommendation engine) to Yandex, the Russian technology behemoth, founded Integration.app. The primary objective? To facilitate engineering teams in seamlessly integrating their company’s products with third-party applications.
Integration.app has recently emerged from stealth mode, boasting $3.5 million in funding led by Crew Capital, with participation from Seedcamp and Cortical Ventures. This financial infusion is earmarked for bolstering the startup’s go-to-market efforts, enhancing sales and marketing initiatives, and doubling Integration’s team from 12 full-time employees to 24 over the next year.
Bratchenko elaborated on the decision to raise equity, emphasizing its advantages in enabling upfront investments in product development and sales without incurring debt servicing costs. Furthermore, this approach fosters a symbiotic relationship with investors who are not merely capital sources but strategic partners in the company’s journey.
At its core, Integration functions as an integration platform as a service (iPaaS) provider, offering a comprehensive suite of tools for bridging the gap between applications and data. In a sector worth over $3.7 billion, it competes with several vendors, including Digibee, Boomi, and the aforementioned MuleSoft. This high demand is substantiated by a 2021 study by TeamDynamix, another iPaaS vendor, revealing that 27% of companies have already invested in iPaaS, with 66% planning to follow suit in the next year or two.
What sets Integration apart, according to Bratchenko, is its innovative use of large language models akin to ChatGPT, automating key aspects of the software integration process. The “connector builder” tool harnesses these models to interpret API documentation, enabling Integration’s customers to swiftly develop “thousands” of connectors.
Developers using Integration can configure a single integration scenario, such as importing customer data from a CRM platform. Integration then seamlessly maps the necessary APIs and user interfaces across multiple applications, generating dozens of connectors, as Bratchenko proudly asserts.
In Bratchenko’s words, Integration assists engineering teams in integrating their products with every SaaS application their customers use. It serves as a universal integration platform with application-specific customization, significantly reducing the time and effort required to maintain hundreds of integrations.
While Integration isn’t the sole iPaaS provider experimenting with generative AI features to streamline app integration, it stands as a testament to innovation in this space. Zapier recently introduced Canvas, an AI-powered tool that allows users to map out entire app-to-app workflows from a single interface. Additionally, Amazon is gearing up to launch AI-driven functionality in AWS AppFabric, its iPaaS offering, to streamline tasks across connected SaaS apps and services.
In the face of growing competition, Bratchenko remains undaunted, emphasizing that Integration commenced commercialization just four months ago and has already attracted dozens of paying customers. His unwavering belief lies in catalyzing a paradigm shift among engineering teams to embrace embedded integration technology. It’s this transformative leap in efficiency and customizability, compared to legacy competitors, that Bratchenko believes will drive widespread adoption among developers.
Conclusion:
Integration.app’s innovative use of AI-powered tools to simplify software integration addresses a critical pain point for enterprises. The market, valued at billions, is ripe for such solutions, as evidenced by the rapid adoption of Integration.app’s offerings. As companies seek more efficient ways to integrate their software, Integration.app is well-positioned for significant growth and market impact.
