Highlights:

  • Kognitos provides a software platform enabling the creation of automation workflows using natural language instructions rather than code.
  • A specific application area that Kognitos focuses on with its platform is document processing.

Kognitos Inc., a task automation startup, recently revealed that Khosla Ventures-led Series A funding round worth USD 20 million has been closed.

Current backers like Engineering Capital, Wipro Ventures, and Clear Ventures have also contributed. With this new investment, Kognitos has received a total of USD 30 million in outside funding.

Numerous enterprises employ RPA, or robotic process automation, tools to automate repetitive business tasks on behalf of employees. These tools empower the creation of software workflows that can observe and learn from how workers execute specific tasks within an application, enabling automated performance. Typically, the construction of such workflows necessitates the creation of custom code.

Kognitos, headquartered in San Jose, California, provides a software platform enabling the creation of automation workflows using natural language instructions instead of code. The company asserts that its platform can accelerate automation initiatives by weeks. Additionally, the absence of coding requirements simplifies the troubleshooting of technical issues.

To generate a Kognitos workflow executing a series of actions within a business application, users need to input concise, plain-English descriptions for each action. The platform also allows the creation of workflows interacting with multiple applications. To ensure the consistent execution of a specified task, users can provide a few examples illustrating the process.

Kognitos specifically targets document processing as a key application area on its platform. According to the company, the platform performs complex tasks like extracting crucial details from a document stored in a cloud storage service and transmitting those details to a business application. Even when faced with a challenging file, Kognitos doesn’t skip the task; instead, it seeks user input for guidance.

The company unveiled its latest funding round recently alongside a significant platform update. Automation workflows crafted using Kognitos can now perform tasks such as comparing and editing images, transcribing speech, and reading QR codes. Regarding data management, the platform has expanded capabilities to automatically fill in information within PDF documents and visualize business metrics.

“For the last few decades we have been forcing humans to learn the language of the machine through various no-code, low code and RPA platforms. The time has come for the machine to natively understand plain English,” stated Binny Gill, the Chief Executive Officer of Kognitos. He founded the company in 2020 following his role as the Chief Technology Officer for Cloud Services at Nutanix Inc.

Kognitos reports that its current user base encompasses several prominent enterprises, including PepsiCo Inc. and Wipro Ltd. To attract additional customers, the company intends to allocate the funds from its recent funding round toward developing new features. This engineering initiative aims to broaden the range of applications with which users’ automation workflows can seamlessly interact.