Helsinki-based Howspace is a digital facilitation platform that helps deliver organisational change initiatives, learning programs, and workshops. In a recent development, the company has raised €12M in its Series A round of funding led by Forestay Capital and Inventure.
Howspace has previously raised €3M in funding, which includes a €1,4M in Seed round in 2017 and a €1.6M bridge round that closed in October 2019.
AI-powered digital collaboration tool
Founded in 2008 and currently led by CEO Ilkka Mäkitalo, Howspace aims to change how people are connected in organisations and other networks and to make work-life more meaningful.
The company does that by offering a dialogue-driven learning and organisational development platform powered by AI. By bringing facilitation methods digitally, it delivers involvement, engagement, and sustained impact in both learning programs and organisational development initiatives.
Howspace CEO Ilkka Mäkitalo says, “We want to be at the forefront of the future of work by enabling people to be truly involved and impactful in the organisations they devote their time to. In Forestay and Inventure, we are partnering with investors that deeply understand our industry and how to make an impact at scale in European and North American markets.”
Organisations like The United Nations use Howspace to encourage and facilitate more engagement through digital channels in settings that include learning, change management, and strategic planning.
Tuomas Kosonen, Partner at Inventure mentioned, “With the COVID-19 pandemic changing the way we communicate, work, and learn together, Howspace’s platform is a clear forerunner in bringing people together in the future, whether through online learning programs, hybrid events or face-to-face workshops.”
Funds for expansion
The raised capital will be used by Howspace to scale its core business and hire new talents to drive growth in North America and Central Europe.
Frederic Wohlwend of Forestay Capital says, “Howspace’s products differentiate it from the market, offering one ecosystem of collaboration with AI acting in the background to facilitate remote interactions at scale. That gives us cause for excitement about what the future holds, and we fully believe in, and back, [Howspace] management’s vision for achieving global growth.”
Founded as a spin-off in 2008, the company today employs over more than 60 people in Europe and North America. The company is already trusted to drive engagement and change in over 30 countries, with 128 partner organisations in 28 countries.
Brief about the investors
Founded in 2017, Forestay Capital invests in the technology sector and is focused on innovative, revenue-generating technology companies in Europe, Israel, and the US that challenge established models and the status-quo, primarily through software and data.
As for Inventure, it claims to be one of the most experienced Nordic venture funds that specialises in helping its portfolio companies with talent and expansion. Started in 2005, the team has been in venture with over 70 companies, including deep tech to consumer internet brands, including Wolt, Detectify, Blueprint Genetics, Swappie, and Insurello. The firm has €230M of assets under management and focuses on Seed and Series A investments across Nordics and Baltics.
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