Dataroots

TLDR

Dataroots is a Leuven-based AI & Machine Learning and Data & Analytics consultancy, acquired by French technology group Talan in December 2022, that designs cloud-native data platforms and machine learning systems for clients such as KBC, AB InBev, Telenet, Nike, and Toyota.

Overview

Dataroots was founded in 2016 by Bart Smeets and Jonas Tundo, both former data professionals at UZ Leuven and Euroclear. The company is headquartered in Leuven and built its reputation in the Belgian AI & Machine Learning and Data & Analytics community by combining hands-on data engineering with Mlops and analytics engineering practices. Partners include Snowflake, dbt Labs, AWS, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure, Prefect, Soda, MotherDuck, and KU Leuven.

In December 2022, Talan, a Paris-based technology consulting group, acquired Dataroots to expand its Belgian footprint and reinforce its AI and next-generation data platform capabilities. At the time of the deal the company employed around 70 consultants. Dataroots continued to operate under its own brand following the acquisition and grew to roughly 150 people by end of 2023, more than doubling within a year inside the wider Talan group of over 4,000 consultants across Europe.

Beyond consulting, Dataroots launched dploy.ai, a platform-as-a-service for deploying machine learning models to production. The customer base spans banking, energy, retail, pharma, government, and telecommunications, including KBC, VRT, AB InBev, Telenet, Bain & Company, Nike, Orange, Toyota, and Crédit Agricole.

Key People

• Bart Smeets, co-founder and former CEO
• Jonas Tundo, co-founder

Funding History

• December 2022: Acquired by Talan, terms undisclosed

Notes

Following the integration into Talan, both founders eventually moved on from operational roles at Dataroots and went into builder mode on a new venture under the working label "Top of Mind".

Sources

• https://dataroots.io
• https://www.talan.com/global/en/talan-acquires-dataroots-belgium-consulting-technology-specialist-artificial-intelligence-and-next-generation-data-platforms
• https://tech.eu/2022/12/15/talan/
• https://www.leuvenmindgate.be/news/talan-acquires-dataroots-consulting-tech-specialist-in-ai-and-next-gen-data-platforms
• https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/dataroots
• https://www.leuvenmindgate.be/news/dataroots-verdubbelt-team-met-14-aanwervingen