The Series C round was led by Sapphire Ventures, with participation from NVC, Amplify Ventures, ICONIQ Growth, Bain Capital Ventures, and Y Combinator. This latest funding round has nearly doubled Hightouch’s valuation to $1.2 billion, compared to its last round in 2023.
The funds will be used to advance Hightouch’s technology, expand business operations, and scale recruitment efforts.
Hightouch’s Journey and Evolution
Tejas Manohar, Hightouch’s co-CEO, co-founded the company with Kashish Gupta (co-CEO) and Josh Curl (CTO). Previously, Manohar and Curl worked together at Segment, where they saw firsthand how APIs were being leveraged for data integration. However, while APIs were a step forward, they were often too technical for businesses dealing with vast amounts of data from different sources.
"Getting users to integrate data into Segment was challenging," Manohar recalled. "Most of the data stored in warehouses was primarily used for analytics, not for marketing."
In 2019, as Segment scaled and was eventually acquired by Twilio for $3.2 billion, Manohar and Curl joined forces with Gupta to launch Hightouch.
Hightouch’s Two Core Products
Hightouch has focused on developing tools in two key areas:
1. Customer Data Platform (CDP)
Hightouch’s CDP is designed for both technical data scientists and non-technical users. Since its 2020 launch, the platform has gained traction by shifting away from app-based data storage and instead making it easier to extract and utilize data directly from warehouses for marketing, sales, and customer service operations.
According to Sapphire Ventures partner Rajeev Dham, who is joining Hightouch’s board, "They recognized that cloud data warehouses are the new customer data platforms."
The CDP enables businesses to:
- Create personalized marketing campaigns
- Manage loyalty programs
- Sync warehouse data with over 250 tools, including major CRM and marketing platforms
- Use SQL queries or graphical interfaces for data extraction
2. AI-Powered Decision-Making
Hightouch’s latest innovation, AI Decisioning, takes automation and machine learning to the next level. This agent-based AI product can be trained for specific objectives, running multiple tests and experiments to recommend optimized marketing campaigns.
Launched in August 2024, AI Decisioning has driven increased customer interest, prompting Hightouch to raise this Series C round despite its existing financial reserves.
"This is what made us say, ‘Let’s scale this up, because now we have a strong use case for capital,’" Gupta explained.
The AI Boom and Hightouch’s Growth
Hightouch’s AI products have already been integrated into the workflows of major companies like Spotify, PetSmart, TripAdvisor, Grammarly, and others. While AI adoption has often been about speeding up processes, Manohar noted that businesses are now seeing AI as a tool for improving customer experiences and increasing lifetime value.
"CEOs, Chief Digital Officers, and Chief Marketing Officers are asking, ‘How can we use AI to enhance customer experiences and boost revenue?’" Manohar stated. "AI agents can run thousands of experiments to determine the most effective strategies."
Previous Funding Rounds
Hightouch’s earlier funding rounds include:
- A seed round in 2020, backed by Y Combinator and others
- A $40 million round led by ICONIQ Growth
- A $38 million round in 2023
With its latest $80 million funding, Hightouch is set to expand its AI-driven marketing capabilities, further reshaping the future of data-driven customer engagement.
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