Dovetail is an Australian software company.[1][2]

Dovetail
Company typePrivate
IndustrySoftware
Founded2017; 7 years ago (2017)
FoundersBenjamin Humphrey, Bradley Ayers
HeadquartersSydney, Australia
Websitedovetail.com

Users create tags to perform transcription analysis and coding interpretation of interviews, survey responses and feedback, and create summarized insights from their research analysis.[3][4][clarification needed]

In August 2021, Dovetail raised AU$5 million at a reported valuation of "more than AU$150 million"; raising its valuation fivefold from its prior fundraising round in 2020.[5][6] Dovetail raised further Series A funding of US$63 million, led by Accel in January 2022.[7]

History

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The company was founded in 2017 in Sydney, Australia by Benjamin Humphrey and Bradley Ayers.[1] Both had worked at software company Atlassian, and Humphrey claims he started Dovetail based on his experience working with researchers at the company.[1][8][9]

Prior to the company's founding, Humphrey worked on the idea in his spare time, outsourcing the product's development and financing it with a AU$10,000 credit card debt.[1] In 2017 he convinced Ayers to leave his role at Atlassian and join as co-founder.[1][10][11]

In November 2017, Dovetail was awarded the AU$25,000 minimum viable product grant from the New South Wales Department of Industry Jobs for NSW program.[12][11] The grant was awarded to fund investment in automatic sentiment analysis features.[13]

In February 2020, Dovetail announced a AU$4 million seed fundraising round led by Blackbird Ventures, with participation from Felicis Ventures and Culture Amp's CEO and co-founder Didier Elzinga to accelerate revenue growth.[1][10] This raise reportedly valued Dovetail at "close to AU$30 million".[6]

In August 2021, Dovetail announced that it had raised AU$5 million from existing investors Blackbird Ventures, Felicis Ventures, along with participation from Mike Cannon-Brookes' investment vehicle, Grok Ventures.[5][6][4]

In January 2022, Dovetail announced it had raised a US$63 million Series A led by Accel.[7][14] New investors also included Webflow CEO and co-founder Vlad Magdalin, CEO and co-founder of Checkr, Daniel Yanisse, and CEO and co-founder of Slack, Stewart Butterfield.[15]

In 2023, Dovetail's headquarters moved to a new office spanning 4,300 square metres over four levels located on Sydney's historic Oxford Street.[16][17] In January 2024, Ayers left the company after stepping down to an engineering role in the previous year.[18]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Redrup, Yolanda (16 February 2020). "Former Atlassian techies raise $4m to go it alone". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  2. ^ Waters, Cara (3 August 2020). "Atlassian alumni launch next generation of startups". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 3 August 2020.
  3. ^ Li, Jennifer (6 April 2021). "The Market for User Research Platforms". Andreessen Horowitz. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  4. ^ a b Palmer-Derrien, Stephanie (10 August 2021). "Dovetail bags $5 million in funding from cohort of influential Aussie leaders". SmartCompany. Retrieved 10 August 2021.
  5. ^ a b Waters, Cara (10 August 2021). "'Similar DNA to Canva, Atlassian': Buzz builds around customer feedback startup Dovetail". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 10 August 2021.
  6. ^ a b c Duran, Paulina (6 August 2021). "Australian startup Dovetail set for expansion as valuation hits $100 mln". Reuters. Retrieved 10 August 2021.
  7. ^ a b Wilhelm, Alex (19 January 2022). "Dovetail raises $63M to grow its researcher-focused software business". TechCrunch. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
  8. ^ Gillezeau, Natasha (1 February 2021). "At best, Australians are lukewarm on Bing". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
  9. ^ Gillezeau, Natasha (30 November 2020). "The quietly rising power of product managers". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 30 November 2020.
  10. ^ a b Palmer-Derrien, Stephanie (18 February 2020). "Atlassian alumni bag $4 million for new SaaS startup, including from Culture Amp chief Didier Elzinga". SmartCompany. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  11. ^ a b Harkness, James (29 November 2017). "Dovetail's founders built their tech startup on the cultural values of ex-employer Atlassian". Dynamic Business. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  12. ^ "Ex Atlassians take flight with Dovetail" (Press release). NSW Department of Industry. 23 November 2017. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  13. ^ Humphrey, Benjamin; Ayers, Bradley (14 November 2017). "Dovetail awarded Jobs for NSW startup grant to fund automated analysis feature". Dovetail. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  14. ^ "Our Series A in Dovetail: The Foundational Layer for Customer Research". Accel. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  15. ^ "Announcing our $63M Series A, led by Accel". Dovetail. 20 January 2022. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  16. ^ Lam, Joseph (11 August 2022). "Sydney's Oxford St revamp lands first tenants Lune Croissanterie, Dovetail". The Australian. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  17. ^ Nicholls, Stephen (11 August 2022). "TOGA's Oxford & Foley project to be Sydney home of world-famous Lune Croissanterie". news.com.au. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  18. ^ Thompson, Sarah; Sood, Kanika; Rapaport, Emma (2024-01-23). "Co-founder exits at $960m start-up Dovetail". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
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