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Globe and Mail
21-05-2025
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Wishpond's SalesCloser AI Agent Achieves Key Milestone with $1 Million in Annual Recurring Revenue
SalesCloser AI has quickly become Wishpond's fastest-growing product to date, achieving $1 million in Annual Recurring Revenue (" ARR") (1), with the majority of this growth occurring in 2025. As of today, SalesCloser AI serves over 150 customers and has successfully built over 2,600 AI-powered agents, further validating the demand for AI-driven sales automation across industries. VANCOUVER, BC , May 21, 2025 /CNW/ - Wishpond Technologies Ltd. (TSXV: WISH) (OTCQX: WPNDF) (the " Company" or " Wishpond"), a provider of AI-enabled marketing-focused online business solutions, is pleased to announce that its SalesCloser AI (" SalesCloser") platform, an AI-enabled sales agent, achieved a key milestone with $1 million in Annual Recurring Revenue (" ARR") (1). This milestone reflects the growing demand for AI-driven sales automation solutions and the scalability of the Company's platform. SalesCloser AI, Wishpond's innovative virtual sales assistant, has demonstrated exciting growth, with over 150 customers and over 2,600 AI-powered agents deployed to date. It has quickly become Wishpond's fastest-growing product, with the majority of its momentum occurring in 2025. This growth underscores the rising demand for AI-driven sales solutions that streamline operations, reduce costs, and enhance efficiency for businesses. Ali Tajskandar, CEO of Wishpond, commented, "Reaching $1 million in ARR (1) with SalesCloser AI is a major milestone for Wishpond and further solidifies our position in AI-powered sales automation. We've seen an increase in demand for our platform, particularly in recent months, as businesses increasingly recognize the potential of AI to revolutionize the sales process. The growth in both our customer base and the number of AI agents deployed underscores the value that SalesCloser AI brings to our clients, driving both scalability and cost-effectiveness." Ali Tajskandar further added, "Our progress with SalesCloser AI is just the beginning. We are currently in the process of beta-testing several new AI agents including a Customer Support AI Agent and Call Receptionist AI Agent. As we continue to innovate and expand our platform's capabilities, we are excited to see even more growth in the coming months. Our mission is to provide businesses with the most efficient, scalable, and cost-effective AI-driven solutions, and this milestone reinforces our ability to deliver on that promise." SalesCloser AI represents Wishpond's commitment to transforming the sales and marketing industry with advanced artificial intelligence software. The platform leverages generative AI to conduct personalized sales calls and product demos, helping businesses increase conversions, reduce customer acquisition costs, and enhance customer satisfaction. As AI continues to redefine business operations, SalesCloser AI is at the forefront of this transformation, providing businesses with a powerful tool to scale efficiently. Wishpond's continued success with SalesCloser AI aligns with the Company's broader strategy of developing AI-driven solutions that streamline the entire customer acquisition journey. The Company's deep expertise in AI technology, combined with its focus on innovation, has positioned it as a leader in AI-enabled marketing and sales automation. Wishpond's SalesCloser AI platform is part of its broader fully autonomous portfolio of AI-powered marketing solutions, which includes tools such as the AI Website Builder, AI Email Automation, and AI Ad Management. Together, these tools help businesses generate and nurture leads, close deals faster, and optimize their marketing efforts, all while driving greater efficiency and reducing costs. To learn more, please visit the SalesCloser AI website: Ali Tajskandar Chief Executive Officer Wishpond Technologies Ltd. About Wishpond Technologies Ltd. Wishpond is a Vancouver -based provider of AI-enabled marketing and sales solutions that help businesses grow more efficiently. The Company's vision is to create a fully autonomous AI-enabled platform that streamlines the entire customer acquisition journey, from lead generation and engagement to deal closure, enabling businesses to scale cost-effectively while driving higher conversions. Wishpond offers an all-in-one marketing suite that integrates AI-driven tools such as an AI Website Builder, AI Email Automation, and SalesCloser AI, a conversational AI-based virtual sales agent that leverages generative AI to conduct personalized sales calls and product demos, increasing efficiency, reducing costs, and enhancing customer satisfaction. With a focus on innovation, Wishpond has filed multiple patent applications in conversational AI, reinforcing its leadership in AI-enabled marketing automation. The Company serves small-to-medium-sized businesses across various industries, providing a powerful yet cost-effective alternative to fragmented marketing solutions. Wishpond employs a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) business model, generating most of its revenue from subscription-based recurring revenue, which ensures strong revenue predictability and cash flow visibility while continuously expanding its AI capabilities. Wishpond is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the ticker "WISH", and on the OTCQX Best Market under the ticker "WPNDF". For further information, visit: (1) Non-GAAP Financial Measures In this press release, Wishpond has used the following terms ("Non-GAAP Financial Measures") that are not defined by international financial reporting standards ("IFRS"), but are used by management to evaluate the performance of Wishpond and its business, including: ARR and MRR. These measures may also be used by investors, financial institutions and credit rating agencies to assess Wishpond's performance and ability to service debt. Non-GAAP Financial Measures do not have standardized meanings prescribed by IFRS and are therefore unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. Securities regulations require that Non-GAAP Financial Measures are clearly defined, qualified and reconciled to their most comparable IFRS financial measures. Except as otherwise indicated, these Non-GAAP Financial Measures are calculated and disclosed on a consistent basis from period to period. Specific items may only be relevant in certain periods. See the disclosure under the heading "Additional GAAP and Non-GAAP Measures" in Wishpond's MD&A, which is available on Wishpond's SEDAR+ profile at for a discussion of Non-GAAP Financial Measures and certain reconciliations to GAAP financial measures. The intent of Non-GAAP Financial Measures is to provide additional useful information to investors and analysts, and the measures do not have any standardized meaning under IFRS. The measures should not, therefore, be considered in isolation or used as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with IFRS. Other issuers may calculate Non-GAAP Financial Measures differently. Non-GAAP Financial Measures are identified and defined as follows: Annual Recurring Revenue: The Company uses Annual Recurring Revenue, or ARR, as a directional indicator of subscription revenue going forward assuming customers maintain their subscription plan for a period of 12 months. ARR is calculated by multiplying total MRR by 12. Monthly Recurring Revenue: The Company uses Monthly Recurring Revenue, or MRR, as a directional indicator of subscription revenue going forward assuming customers maintain their subscription plan the following month. MRR is the total of all monthly subscription plan fees paid by customers in effect on the last day of that period. If customers pay for more than one month upfront, the amount is divided by the number of months in the subscription period. Discounts are deducted prior to the calculation and one-time payments and metered based charges are excluded. Forward-Looking Statements Statements that are not reported financial results or other historical information are forward-looking statements or forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws (collectively, " forward-looking statements"). This press release includes forward-looking statements regarding the Company, its subsidiaries and the industries in which they operate, including statements about, among other things, references to expected results from future operations, future growth of the Company's products and platforms, the future development and increased use of products incorporating artificial intelligence, including SalesCloser and the self-testing and human takeover technology, and expectations around the outcome of the beta-testing and application for the patents, references to the growth of the Company's product portfolio and future profitability, including whether additional products or features may be developed in the future, and the functionality and timing of such products, financial results or operational activities that may be undertaken by the Company, the results of the Company's cost-savings, research and development and other initiatives, any future acquisitions or other activities done to grow the Company both organically or inorganically, expectations, beliefs, plans, future operations, the impact of broader economic factors including inflation and other general economic risks on the Company, business and acquisition strategies, opportunities, objectives, prospects, assumptions, including those related to trends and prospects, and future events and performance. Sentences and phrases containing or modified by words such as "expect", "anticipate", "plan", "continue", "estimate", "intend", "expect", "may", "will", "project", "predict", "potential", "targets", "projects", "is designed to", "strategy", "should", "believe", "contemplate" and similar expressions, and the negative of such expressions, are not historical facts and are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Actual results and developments may differ materially from those contemplated by forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in forward-looking statements in this press release are reasonable and are based on, among other things, the expectations and analysis of current market trends and opportunities of management of the Company, such forward-looking statements have been based on expectations, factors and assumptions concerning future events which may prove to be inaccurate and are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond the Company's control, including, but not limited to, economic uncertainty and instability as a result of the ongoing inflation and supply chain issues, higher interest rate climate, tightening of credit availability and recessionary risks, pandemic related risks, wars, instability in global commodity and securities markets, shifts in consumer and institutional spending and marketing strategies, risks related to data breaches and privacy, the changing global market and competition for the products and services supplied by the Company, risks associated with the failure to obtain the patents applied for and infringement by third parties of the Company's intellectual property, risks associated with unsatisfactory results from beta-testing and the additional risk factors discussed in the continuous disclosure materials of the Company which are available under the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement and are made as of the date hereof. The Company disclaims any intention and has no obligation or responsibility, except as required by law, to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
TechCrunch
08-05-2025
- Business
- TechCrunch
Clay authorizes employee tender at a $1.5B valuation led by Sequoia
It took seven years of hard work for Kareem Amin, co-founder and CEO of sales automation startup Clay, to see the company's product finally take off in 2022. Since then, the startup has experienced explosive growth, reached a valuation exceeding a billion dollars, and expanded its employee count from low double digits to over 200. Despite the team's average short tenure at the company, Amin made a rare decision: Clay is allowing employees who have at least a year of tenure to sell some of their shares at a relatively high share price to one of its existing investors, Sequoia. It's a win for everyone. The employee tender offer values the company at $1.5 billion, up from the $1.25 billion it secured in its Series B funding in January. Sequoia, an investor in Clay since its 2019 Series A, has agreed to purchase up to $20 million in employee stock. Startup employees often trade lower pay for a bet on the company's future, Amin told TechCrunch. 'Most of the startups don't work out, but Clay is working out, and so we wanted to make sure that they have the option of liquidity.' According to Amin, both current employees and former employees are eligible to sell a specific portion of their equity, typically equivalent to about one year's salary. Alfred Lin, a partner at Sequoia, sees Amin's and co-founder Varun Anand's decision to offer company-wide participation in the startup's financial success as another sign of Clay's uniqueness. 'Clay is a very creative place,' Lin said. The startup's technology helps salespeople and marketers find the right data and automate their go-to-market strategy with AI. Clay's tools are used by thousands of customers, who range from large companies like OpenAI, HubSpot, and Canva, to over 100 small consulting agencies that help other businesses use Clay for their go-to-market efforts. The company hasn't taken its loyal community of customers for granted. In February, Clay gave the option to its direct users to participate in its growth by allowing its community members around the world to invest in the startup at the same valuation offered to its Series B investors. Clay raised about $3 million in a community round so its customers could directly share in its growth, Amin said. Techcrunch event Exhibit at TechCrunch Sessions: AI Secure your spot at TC Sessions: AI and show 1,200+ decision-makers what you've built — without the big spend. Available through May 9 or while tables last. Exhibit at TechCrunch Sessions: AI Secure your spot at TC Sessions: AI and show 1,200+ decision-makers what you've built — without the big spend. Available through May 9 or while tables last. Berkeley, CA | BOOK NOW Amin views the tender offer and the community round as a demonstration for Clay's employees and direct customers that building the company is a collective effort: a way, as he put it, to ensure 'the gains don't just accumulate to a few people.' While the tender will help current and former employees cash out some of their shares, allowing them a degree of financial freedom, Amin and Anand don't plan to sell any of their shares in the offering. For Sequoia, the tender is an opportunity to increase its stake in Clay, reflecting the firm's confidence in the company's potential. However, Lin believes that many Clay employees won't be too eager to sell a lot of their stock now because they expect their shares to be worth much more in the future. 'There is probably going to be less than $20 million in demand, which is sad for Sequoia because we'd like to buy more.' And if employees don't sell some of their shares now, there will likely be another opportunity in the future. Amin said Clay is growing so quickly that he would like to launch tender offers annually. Amin hopes the company's tender will set a trend, inspiring other startups to offer employee liquidity as well.
