London-based startup Count, a new data platform giving early-stage tech companies faster data analysis powers, has come out of stealth mode. Count has announced raising €2.2 million, via a previously un-announced seed round led by LocalGlobe, and is launching formally. It’s also opened up its data platform to startups working in the fight against the coronavirus crisis for free.
Count, founded in 2016, was designed as a data consolidation and analysis platform, to help growing tech companies make strategic and operational decisions with confidence. The company was founded by former management consultant Oliver Hughes and Imperial College physicist Oliver Pike, who were frustrated by the number of people who weren’t able to make data-driven decisions because of the complexity of standard data software and the technical and design constraints accepted by the industry.
Co-founder Hughes said: “During our research we spoke with hundreds of teams who were struggling to move quickly because of the limitations of their data infrastructure. The teams making the most progress were having to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars a year, across separate solutions, to help them get their data under control and it was taking them up to 12-18 months to purchase and implement it all.”
To solve this problem, Count is a data warehouse, transformation tool and visualisation and reporting platform all in one. It provides teams with everything they need to use their data effectively in a fraction of the time and cost of current approaches.
One of the core differences between Count and other data tools is the lack of dashboards. Instead, analysis and visualisations in Count are all completed in data notebooks. “Dashboards may be the industry’s method of choice for displaying data but they’re actually pretty poor at helping teams make decisions,” said co-founder Hughes. “Dashboards show lots of charts but don’t provide the wider context which is always needed when making decisions confidently.”
In comparison Count’s notebooks allow users to combine their analysis with text, images and other content, so users can explain their findings fully and aid collaboration. Additionally notebooks offer a range of ways users can explore data based on their experience level. Count has even created their own “notebook SQL” syntax which allows users to query data up to 7x faster than SQL.
Previously unannounced, the startup recently closed a new seed funding round, led by LocalGlobe, with participation from Global Founders Capital. Angel investors including Charlie Songhurst, the former head of corporate strategy at Microsoft have also backed the round. These new funds will be put to use in growing the reach of the product, and helping more early-stage startups make data-driven decisions at a crucial time.
Remus Brett, Partner at LocalGlobe, said: “Most people know that data is incredibly important but the ability to take it and tell stories with it still remains difficult. Now more than ever, we see the value in being able to process and analyse data at speed, to help us make critical decisions. Count makes it possible for even very early stage companies to begin making decisions based on analysis of their data.”
In an additional move, Count hopes the speed and ease of implementation of its platform will be of help to organisations tackling the direct and indirect impacts of the current crisis. It’s now offering organisations 6 months free access to the Count platform as well as dedicated analytical support to teams most in need of analyst support.
