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Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
OneStream CEO highlights ‘deterministic' AI approach
This story was originally published on CFO Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily CFO Dive newsletter. Dive Brief: Enterprise software company OneStream will continue to build and refine AI solutions that help CFOs solve 'deterministic,' rather than 'subjective' problems, as it looks to execute on the strong performance it logged for its second quarter — where it reported a 26% increase in revenue year-over-year and a 281% jump in free cash flow, CEO and President Tom Shea told CFO Dive. The Birmingham, Mich.-based company's Q2 results show 'customers like that we have this platform that can deliver not only on the core financial capabilities that CFOs need, but also operational and AI [capabilities], and that journey is really resonating with CFOs,' Shea said in an interview. The business remains focused on developing AI solutions that will provide finance leaders with the transparent, trusted data they need from such technologies — rather than generating summaries or theories that require interpretation. 'We understand that in order for AI to be meaningful for CFOs, when CFOs are looking for deterministic solutions that have to be fact-based, we have to provide both the trust and the transparency, or there will be no adoption,' he said. Dive Insight: For the quarter ended June 30, OneStream reported total revenues of $147.6 million, while free cash flow hit $29.4 million compared to $7.7 million for the prior year period, according to its earnings results released Thursday. Net income reached $1.6 million, compared to an operating loss of $8.7 million for the prior year period. OneStream's bid to build out 'deterministic' AI tools comes as the finance chief's role has continued to evolve, Shea highlighted during the software provider's Q2 earnings call Friday. As CFOs take on more strategic and operational responsibilities, they are also examining how AI and similar technologies can be best used in the finance function. 'Having utilized outdated legacy financial systems for decades, CFOs are recognizing the crucial need for a platform to provide a single view into financial and operational data across the enterprise to effectively steer the business,' Shea said Friday according to a transcript, pointing to key business drivers for OneStream. The company is seeking to continue the growth shown in Q2 throughout the rest of the year, with an eye towards further strengthening profitability and cash flow, Shea told CFO Dive. For the fiscal year 2025, OneStream is targeting revenue between $586 million to $590 million, as well as net income per share of between $0.07 - $0.15, according to its earnings report. As it works towards that guidance, the company has continued to add new AI solutions to its 'SensibleAI' product suite, where it offers tools such as SensibleAI Forecast, which can aid financial leaders in scenario modeling and in identifying risk. In May, the company announced it would introduce agentic AI tools, including a 'deep analysis agent,' into the SensibleAI suite to help financial leaders address complex questions, CFO Dive previously reported. The agents remain in private preview and will be released in the next half year, Shea said. 'We're in the process right now validating that customers are getting that transparent response, that they can trust it,' Shea said of OneStream's agentic AI solutions. OneStream is one of several software providers which has moved to develop agentic AI solutions as finance leaders mull the potential benefits of such tools. A recent study by Salesforce found that on average, finance chiefs allocate 25% of their current AI budgets to agents, CFO Dive previously reported, while Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff previously announced plans to deploy one billion such agents by the end of the year. As OneStream continues to move forward with its agentic AI plans, the business is also weighing how current macroeconomic trends could impact its future strategy. OneStream is optimistic about its future growth, but the business is 'balancing' that positivity with 'some near-term prudence, just simply around the federal government,' Shea said, noting the company has a significant presence in the federal government. OneStream achieved Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) High authorization status in March, a designation that enables it to be used by federal agencies 'that require the highest level of security for the government's most sensitive, unclassified data in cloud computing environments,' according to a press release at the time. During its Q2 earnings call, 'we indicated that there's some uncertainty around the federal buying pattern in the near term, but we feel great about our long-term opportunity,' Shea said. Recommended Reading Zoom rebrands, aims to be known as 'AI-first' company 擷取數據時發生錯誤 登入存取你的投資組合 擷取數據時發生錯誤 擷取數據時發生錯誤 擷取數據時發生錯誤 擷取數據時發生錯誤
Forbes
18-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
A Framework For Navigating Software Evolution
Matthew Buckingham, SVP of Sales, Focal Point. Enterprise software is evolving rapidly. AI is reshaping SaaS categories and forcing both vendors and buyers to adapt. It reminds me of working in R&D in the U.K. automotive industry in the 1980s, when Austin Rover, like other automotive companies, began introducing robots and automation. It was a shock. Jobs changed. Skills had to evolve. The next wave in software is agentic AI. These aren't just chatbots or dashboards. They are software agents that take action and offer recommendations. They are becoming part of the workforce, not just tools you access. Many organizations are modernizing while weighing point solutions against all-in-one platforms, all under the glare of AI hype. It becomes even harder without a consistent lens to judge what will truly move the business forward. A tool may be powerful, but still not fit your team's way of working. The right technology, applied with intent, reduces complexity and accelerates decision making. A simple framework can help cut through the noise of AI and shifting business models. It is the classic trio: people, process and technology. This is not a slogan. It is a practical filter for evaluating tools, designing systems and driving durable change. When choosing software, ask yourself: Does this help my team do better work? Are the processes it supports clear, repeatable and efficient? Does the technology integrate with our current stack, or does it add friction? Here are three things software should do in this new world of AI: 1. Centralize Data (People + Technology) Disconnected solutions and AI agents create fragmented data. This slows decisions and duplicates effort. When teams are unsure which version of a document is current or whether an update was captured, trust breaks down. Centralizing data does not mean replacing every tool. While point software solutions designed for specific tasks have their place, they need to be integrated within a broader architecture that upholds a foundation, and companies should approach AI agents in the same way. It means creating a shared point of visibility across systems that people already use. This makes it easier to find what matters and make decisions based on reliable inputs. Most teams use multiple systems daily. A procurement manager might switch between email, a sourcing platform, spreadsheets, contract tools and Slack. If those systems are not connected, collaboration becomes harder and risk increases. Other functions have addressed this. Sales and marketing teams often integrate project tools, cloud storage and chat apps to maintain shared visibility. Procurement teams can do the same. When sourcing data, contract status and intake activity are accessible from one place, it improves alignment across teams. Centralized data supports faster decisions, better compliance and smoother collaboration. It also reduces errors and manual work while enabling AI agents to be deployed more effectively due to shared and consistent data. 2. Streamline Processes (Process + Technology) Processes often get more complex over time. New policies or tools can introduce extra steps. What starts as a simple approval can turn into a slow chain of reviews and follow-ups. The fix is not just automation. Teams need to understand what steps are necessary and where technology can simplify or remove friction. Well-defined workflows turn a process into an asset, not a burden. This is already standard in other parts of the business. Marketing and operations teams use tools like Notion or Airtable, often paired with automation platforms, to route approvals and reduce backlogs. Tasks move faster because they are structured, not improvised. Procurement teams benefit from the same structure. Intake forms, approval paths and contract reviews can all be managed in a configurable workflow. This cuts down on email threads, reduces errors and gives everyone a shared understanding of what comes next. Clear workflows also make it easier to train new team members (or agents) and adapt to change. When everyone follows the same process, work becomes more consistent and predictable. 3. Empower People (People + Process) Technology only works when people can use it easily. If a system is too complex or unclear, adoption suffers. Even strong tools underperform when teams are unsure how or when to use them. Empowered teams have visibility, autonomy and access. They can see status in real time. They know who owns what. They do not have to chase updates or rely on manual check-ins. This creates accountability and keeps work moving. Agile teams use this model every day. Work management platforms support ownership and progress tracking across functions. These platforms succeed not because they are complex but because they are transparent. Procurement teams can adopt the same approach. Self-service intake, real-time progress views and collaborative workflows help teams move forward without constant oversight. When stakeholders know where things stand and what is needed from them, they are more likely to engage. This level of empowerment also helps leadership. When systems are clear and adoption is strong, leaders can focus on strategy rather than day-to-day follow-up. Final Thoughts The future of enterprise software will depend on the choices leaders make now. As AI changes how teams operate, value won't come from adopting new tools alone. It will come from applying the right technology in ways that support people and improve processes. Agentic AI can create real value, but only when they operate with systems that are clear and connected. Centralized data supports alignment. Streamlined processes reduce friction. Empowered teams get more done. These are not big ideas for the future; they are requirements for staying competitive today. Procurement, like many functions, is facing more complexity and faster change. As software stacks grow and resources stay tight, teams need a clearer way forward. That starts by asking better questions and building business-centric systems that help people make faster, more informed decisions. The teams that succeed will be those that get the fundamentals right and modernize with intent. It's not about chasing new tools. It's about building a foundation that can scale, flex with change and support people—and dare I say AI agents—in doing their best work. Forbes Business Development Council is an invitation-only community for sales and biz dev executives. Do I qualify?
WIRED
17-07-2025
- Business
- WIRED
OpenAI's New ChatGPT Agent Tries to Do It All
It's a PowerPoint generator! It's a date-night planner! It's … another agent from OpenAI. Isa Fulford, the research lead for OpenAI's new ChatGPT agent, needed to order a bunch of cupcakes, so she asked the AI tool to do it for her. 'I was very specific about what I wanted, and it was a lot of cupcakes,' she says. 'That one took almost an hour—but it was easier than me doing it myself, because I didn't want to do it.' OpenAI has launched a new agent for ChatGPT that uses a virtual browser to complete tasks and can generate downloadable files, specifically PowerPoint presentations and Excel spreadsheets. While not a full replacement for the Microsoft suite of workplace tools, the features included in this agent from OpenAI could obviate some users' reliance on Microsoft's enterprise software. The two companies are longtime partners and currently in contract negotiations over ongoing access to OpenAI's models. The release is part of OpenAI's ongoing efforts to turn its nearly three-year-old chatbot into a money-making product. No small feat, despite the tool's millions of users, when you factor in the costs to train and run powerful AI models as well as the exorbitant salaries required to retain top-tier staff members. An agent, in this context, refers to an AI tool that is able to—or at least attempts to—navigate third-party software and websites and make decisions on its journey to complete digital tasks, following an initial set of instructions from the user. 'Agent' is the buzziest of buzzwords right now for companies looking to sell generative AI tools, especially those with an eye on enterprise customers. 'We've tried to build a product with a whole lot of enterprise use cases,' says Yash Kumar, the product lead on the ChatGPT agent. In addition to its file generating capabilities, the agent can fill out online forms, use a programming terminal, and make calls to public APIs to online services like Google Drive and SharePoint. This isn't the first agent released by OpenAI in 2025. The new ChatGPT agent brings together aspects of OpenAI's web-browsing Operator and its long-processing deep research features, both released earlier this year and considered to be agents by the startup. 'I was on the deep research team, and Yash was on the Operator team,' Fulford says. 'We realized that the two products are very complimentary, and basically decided to combine teams.' The ChatGPT agent can switch between interacting with a visual browser where it can click around, like Operator does, and a text-based browser where it can process loads of websites, like deep research does. The rollout out the ChatGPT agent is coming first to Pro, Plus, and Team subscribers, starting today for Pro users. Enterprise and Education subs will likely receive access to the feature later in the summer. At launch, Pro users are generally capped at 400 agent prompts a month, with 40 prompts allowed for the other tiers of paying users. It's unclear when this feature will roll out for free users of ChatGPT. Fulford shared her experience of the agent taking an hour to procure cupcakes as an example of OpenAI's tool needing a long time to complete a task during the testing process. Every request won't require that kind of time investment. Still, users should be prepared to wait as agents frolic around the internet. In a prelaunch demo for WIRED, Kumar used the ChatGPT agent to automate a range of tasks, from consumer uses like planning a date night, to enterprise-focused examples like parsing Excel sheets for a financial analyst and making a slide deck that unpacks Nvidia's Q1 earnings. Whereas planning a night out with the ChatGPT agent—going through your calendar, finding a restaurant with availability—may take five minutes, generating an earnings-based slide deck is more research intensive and may take around 25 minutes. 'You can do as many things as you want in parallel,' Kumar says. According to him, an average task with the ChatGPT agent takes around 10 or 15 minutes. From potentially knowing the types of cuisine my partner prefers, based on past chats, to building a slide deck with formatting that's aligned with what I may usually request, many of these potential tasks could benefit from accessing ChatGPT's memory feature. Even though OpenAI wants to integrate memory with the ChatGPT agent eventually, it won't be part of the initial launch. 'It's not that we don't think it's safe,' Kumar says. 'We're just taking an extra precaution.' He mentions the potential for prompt injection attacks as one example of why OpenAI wants to learn more before hooking up the ChatGPT agent to stored user memories. Both of the OpenAI staff members emphasized that having the user still feel like they are in control, even as the agent automates tasks, is critical. 'We have a list of websites where we think it's risky to go, these include things like social media or financial transactions,' Kumar says. Building upon the 'watch mode' rolled out with Operator earlier this year, the agent has a similar setting where software tasks deemed to involve a high level of personal risk require the user to watch the AI tool actively and not swipe away from the web page. After my call with OpenAI, the afternoon before the launch of this agent, it was a new 'replay' feature that I couldn't get out of my head. 'You can replay the conversation,' he says. 'Before agent, a lot of the conversations were not as long, relatively speaking.' I tried to imagine what the almost hour-long screen recording of Fulford's agent looked like as it scrambled to find the perfect cupcakes. Where did it go first? Where did the tool potentially get lost? I pictured myself in five years, potentially speed-scrubbing through replays of my AI agent's actions more often than clicking around the internet myself. If the era of AI agents sticks around, which is far from guaranteed, the way we use the web will fundamentally change.
Reuters
15-07-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Cognition AI to buy Windsurf, doubling down on AI-driven coding
July 14 (Reuters) - Artificial intelligence startup Cognition AI on Monday agreed to acquire Windsurf, an integrated development environment platform, strengthening its position in the rapidly evolving enterprise software market. The deal follows Google's $2.4 billion deal with Windsurf last week aimed at acquiring top talent and securing licensing rights to its technology. The deal with Google marks a win for Windsurf's backers, who have raised $243 million from investors including Kleiner Perkins, Greenoaks, and General Catalyst, and was last valued at $1.25 billion one year ago, according to PitchBook. The move reflects a broader trend among technology giants such as Alphabet (GOOGL.O), opens new tab and Meta, which are making bold, high-value acquisitions and offering lucrative compensation packages to secure leading industry talent amid intensifying competition in the AI sector. The deal with Cognition covers Windsurf's intellectual property, product line, brand, and business operations, as well as its highly regarded engineering, product, and go-to-market teams. While the financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, Windsurf brings with it $82 million in annual recurring revenue and a customer base of more than 350 enterprises. "Among all the teams in the AI space, Cognition was literally the one we have respected the most, and they are a perfect fit to bring Windsurf to the next phase," Jeff Wang, Windsurf's interim chief executive officer, said in an email to employees. In the immediate term, Windsurf will continue to operate independently, with Cognition pledging significant investment to integrate Windsurf's technology and unique assets into its own product suite, including its flagship autonomous agent, Devin. Earlier, Windsurf had been engaged in months-long discussions with OpenAI regarding a potential acquisition that could have valued the company at $3 billion, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters in June.
CNA
14-07-2025
- Business
- CNA
Cognition AI to buy Windsurf, doubling down on AI-driven coding
Artificial intelligence startup Cognition AI on Monday agreed to acquire Windsurf, an integrated development environment platform, strengthening its position in the rapidly evolving enterprise software market. The deal follows Google's $2.4 billion deal with Windsurf last week aimed at acquiring top talent and securing licensing rights to its technology. The deal with Google marks a win for Windsurf's backers, who have raised $243 million from investors including Kleiner Perkins, Greenoaks, and General Catalyst, and was last valued at $1.25 billion one year ago, according to PitchBook. The move reflects a broader trend among technology giants such as Alphabet and Meta, which are making bold, high-value acquisitions and offering lucrative compensation packages to secure leading industry talent amid intensifying competition in the AI sector. The deal with Cognition covers Windsurf's intellectual property, product line, brand, and business operations, as well as its highly regarded engineering, product, and go-to-market teams. While the financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, Windsurf brings with it $82 million in annual recurring revenue and a customer base of more than 350 enterprises. "Among all the teams in the AI space, Cognition was literally the one we have respected the most, and they are a perfect fit to bring Windsurf to the next phase," Jeff Wang, Windsurf's interim chief executive officer, said in an email to employees. In the immediate term, Windsurf will continue to operate independently, with Cognition pledging significant investment to integrate Windsurf's technology and unique assets into its own product suite, including its flagship autonomous agent, Devin. Earlier, Windsurf had been engaged in months-long discussions with OpenAI regarding a potential acquisition that could have valued the company at $3 billion, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters in June.
