View source for Afiniti

{{Short description|American software and data company}}
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{{Infobox company
| name = Afiniti
| logo = Afiniti_Logo.png
| logo_size = 140
| type = [[Private company|Private]]
| industry = [[Software development]]
| genre = [[Artificial intelligence]]
| founded = 2005 in [[Washington, D.C.]], [[United States]]
| founders = [[Zia Chishti]]
| hq_location = Hamilton
| hq_location_country = Bermuda
| area_served = <!-- or: | areas_served = --> Worldwide
| key_people = Hassan Afzal CEO<br>Thomas Inskip President<ref name=Z>{{cite web |url=https://www.afiniti.com/about-us/ |title= Management |publisher=Afiniti |access-date=November 28, 2018}}</ref>
| num_employees = 1,300<ref name=A/>
| num_employees_year = 2021
| parent =
| website = {{URL|afiniti.com}}
}}
'''Afiniti Ltd.''', also called '''Afiniti''',<ref name=HH>{{cite news |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/that-anonymous-voice-at-the-call-center-they-may-know-a-lot-about-you-1483698608|title=Many Call Centers Know a Surprising Amount About You|date=January 10, 2017|work=[[The Wall Street Journal]]|first=Ryan|last=Knutston|issn=0099-9660|access-date=November 21, 2021}}{{subscription required}}</ref> is an American [[multinational company|multinational]] data and software company. Founded in 2005, Afiniti is focused on developing [[artificial intelligence]] for use in customer call centers.<ref name=A/> Afiniti is a [[Unicorn (finance)|unicorn company]] with a valuation of $1.6 billion in 2017.<ref name=A/><ref name=venturebeat/>
==History==
===2006–2010: Initial years===
In 2006, Afiniti was founded in [[Washington, D.C.]] by [[Zia Chishti]], a former [[Morgan Stanley]] investment banker who had previously co-founded [[Align Technology]], with the help of his partners at [[The Resource Group]] (TRG), Hasnain Aslam and Mohammed Khaishgi of the [[Kheshgi|Kheshgi family]].<ref name=A>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/washington/news/2018/06/11/meet-d-c-s-little-known-artificial-intelligence.html|title=Meet D.C.'s little-known artificial intelligence firm — and its plans to go public|first=Andy|last=Medici|date=June 11, 2018|work=[[American City Business_Journals#Newspapers|Washington Business Journal]]|access-date=November 21, 2021}}{{subscription required}}</ref><ref name=AA>{{Cite news|url=https://tribune.com.pk/story/1577860/2-born-us-raised-pakistan-man-founded-two-billion-dollar-companies/|title=Born in the US, raised in Pakistan: Man who founded two billion-dollar companies|date=December 7, 2017|work=[[The Express Tribune]]|first=Bilal|last=Memon|access-date=November 21, 2021}}</ref> In 2008, the company submitted several patents related to matching caller data with computer models, which were granted in 2014.<ref name=Y>{{cite web |url=https://www.afiniti.com/history |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181211010215/https://www.afiniti.com/history |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 11, 2018 |title=History|publisher=Afiniti |access-date=December 10, 2018}}</ref>
===2011–2020: Growth and unicorn status===
In late 2016, the company confidentially filed for a potential future [[initial public offering]] (IPO).<ref name=venturebeat>{{cite news|url=https://venturebeat.com/2017/04/14/sales-ai-company-afiniti-raises-1-6-billion-files-for-ipo|title=Sales AI company Afiniti valued at $1.6 billion, files for IPO|first=Matt|last=Marshall|date=April 14, 2017|work=[[VentureBeat]]|access-date=November 21, 2021}}</ref><ref name=C>{{cite news|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-01-24/ai-firm-afiniti-said-to-weigh-ipo-at-about-2-billion-value|title=AI Firm Afiniti Said to Weigh IPO at About $2 Billion Value|work=[[Bloomberg News]]|first1=Giles|last1=Turner|first2=Manuel|last2=Baigorri|date=January 2014|access-date=November 21, 2021}}{{subscription required}}</ref><ref name=CC/> Around that time, Afiniti also introduced software to run phone numbers "through a variety of databases prior to when a call center agent picks up the phone." The system referred to around 100 databases to gather information on callers, including from public profiles such as [[Twitter]]. According to [[Fortune (magazine)|''Fortune'' magazine]], the system operated on "the idea that it's possible, using thousands of call records, to determine which agents perform best with certain type of customers."<ref name=I>{{cite magazine |url=http://fortune.com/2017/01/10/how-companies-use-your-social-media-data-when-taking-your-call|title=How Companies Use Your Social Media Data When Taking Your Call|first=Jeff John|last=Roberts|date=January 10, 2017|magazine=[[Fortune (magazine)|Fortune magazine]]|access-date=November 21, 2021}}{{subscription required}}</ref>
According to ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'', by January 2017, the company had installed its artificial intelligence software in around 150 call centers for several dozen companies,<ref name=HH/> among them [[Caesars Entertainment Corporation]] and [[Sprint Corporation|Sprint]].<ref name=I/> In 2017, the company closed a fourth round of venture funding,<ref name=venturebeat/> bringing in $80 million<ref name=venturebeat/> from investors such as [[GAM (company)|GAM]], [[McKinsey & Co]], [[Elisabeth Murdoch (businesswoman)|Elisabeth Murdoch]], and [[John Browne, Baron Browne of Madingley|John Browne]]. The round brought the company's total funding raised since its inception to $100 million.<ref name=venturebeat/><ref name=tribune>{{cite news |url=https://tribune.com.pk/story/1385200/company-founded-pakistani-valued-1-6-billion|title=This company founded by a Pakistani is valued at $1.6 billion|date=April 16, 2017|work=[[The Express Tribune]]|location=Karachi|access-date=November 21, 2021}}</ref> Afiniti signed a deal with [[Huawei]] in September 2017<ref name=J>{{cite news|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-02/tycoon-takes-investors-heli-skiing-to-show-them-pakistan-s-safe|title=Tycoon Takes Investors Heli Skiing to Show Them Pakistan's Safe|author=Faseeh Mangi|date=October 2, 2017|work=Bloomberg News|access-date=November 21, 2021}}{{subscription required}}</ref> and Avaya in April 2018.<ref name=AV>{{cite web |url=https://www.avaya.com/en/about-avaya/newsroom/news-releases/2018/pr-us-180424|title=Avaya and Afiniti Partner to Bring Unique and Proven, AI-Driven Behavioral Pairing to the Contact Center |author= |date=April 24, 2018 |publisher=Avaya |access-date=November 21, 2021}}</ref>
In January 2018, ''Fortune'' magazine included Afiniti on its list of the 100 companies "leading the way in A.I."<ref name=K>{{cite news|url=https://fortune.com/2018/01/08/artificial-intelligence-ai-companies-invest-startups|title=These 100 Companies Are Leading the Way in A.I.|work=Fortune magazine|first1=Nicolas|last1=Rapp|first2=Brian|last2=O'Keef|date=January 8, 2018|access-date=November 21, 2021}}</ref> By June 2018, Afiniti had been active in 18 countries and had 1,000 employees.<ref name=A/><ref name=CC>{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/mergermarket/2018/01/12/top-30-tech-exits-to-watch-in-2018/#9f0ecd33a58e|work=[[Forbes]]|title=Top 30 Tech Exits To Watch In 2018|first=Troy|last=Hooper|date=January 12, 2018|access-date=November 21, 2021}}</ref>
===2021–present: Resignation of Zia Chishti and decline ===
In November 2021, Zia Chishti stepped down as chairman, chief executive officer and director following allegations of sexual assault to an employee made in testimony to the [[United States House Committee on the Judiciary]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Afiniti founder Zia Chishti 'steps down' after sexual assault allegations |url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1658987 |work=[[Dawn (newspaper)|Dawn]]|date=November 19, 2021|access-date=November 21, 2021|location=Karachi}}</ref> The former UK prime minister [[David Cameron]] left his role as chair of Afiniti's advisory board following the allegations.<ref>{{cite news|title=David Cameron quits Afiniti role after founder accused of sexual assault|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2021/nov/17/david-cameron-quits-afiniti-founder-accused-sexual-assault-zia-chishti|work=[[The Guardian]]|first=Rupert|last=Neate|date=November 17, 2021|access-date=November 21, 2021|location=London}}</ref>
On September 19, 2024 Afiniti filed for liquidation and winding up under the Companies Act of 1981 in the Supreme Court of Bermuda. The company further shared that as part of its restructuring agreement with creditors, it would proceed to wind up its global entities in the courts of Bermuda and US to form a new company under the ownership of principal creditors Vista Capital Partners.
==Services and technology==
According to the company, its software uses AI to boost company's efficiency by "predicting interpersonal behavior"<ref name=tribune/> between the callers and agents.<ref name=A/> ''[[VentureBeat]]'' explains that "when a customer calls into a call center, Afiniti matches their phone number — either [[landline]] or cellphone — with any information tied to it from up to 100 databases. These databases carry purchase history, income, and other demographic information."<ref name=venturebeat/><ref <ref name=HH/> Data on customers is collected from the customers and from [[data broker]]s. Afiniti does not charge for the software or service itself, but instead takes a percentage of any proven revenue increases resulting from use of the software.<ref name=A/>
==See also==
*[[List of unicorn startup companies]]
== References ==
<references />
==External links==
*[https://www.afiniti.com afiniti.com]
[[Category:Software companies based in Washington, D.C.]]
[[Category:Software companies of the United States]]
[[Category:2005 establishments in the United States]]
[[Category:2005 establishments in Washington, D.C.]]
[[Category:Software companies established in 2005]]
[[Category:American companies established in 2005]]