Success Story - Startup Made in Aachen: automaited
The software and AI startup automaited (formerly aiConomix) helps employees solve tasks faster and easier without the need for programmers. The software delves deep into the processes within a company and identifies areas where things could run faster, better, and more efficiently. The self-learning software assistant uses process mining to recognize recurring work processes on the computer and automates them. Since 2020, the startup has been a member of digitalHUB Aachen e.V. and has participated in various events and programs, including the event "Meet the Startups Euregio" and the digitalHUB Aachen Incubation Program 20/21. After receiving pre-seed financing in early 2021 from the TechVision Fund I, the Visionaries Club, and other business angels, the startup has now secured a four-million-dollar seed financing from Berlin-based venture capitalist Headline, which is involved in companies such as Sonos, Sorare, Bumble, and Gopuff. Additionally, the early-stage investor Northzone has joined.
The Offering
automaited provides a platform for automation in the B2B sector. Users have access to an intuitive assistant that offers automation through AI. By utilizing process mining, the assistant independently identifies recurring work processes and suggests suitable actions to the user, such as copying data or filling out entire forms. Unlike traditional RPA solutions, automaited does not require the assistance of programmers and learns from the knowledge of the users. Although automaited takes care of process automation sections autonomously, users maintain full control over their workflows as the automations are only executed with their consent. The result is that users save countless work hours and can focus on important tasks.
The Customers
automaited falls within the realm of hyperautomation and generates automations for process sections that were previously not economically automatable. Based on a user-licensing model, this represents a significant opportunity for small and medium-sized enterprises since process automation using conventional methods is often complex and expensive. The startup already supports many renowned customers with its solution and now plans to heavily invest in expanding its team. The Stadtwerke Bonn (public utility company) were among the startup's first customers. Previously, the employees of Stadtwerke often spent a significant portion of their time transferring data from Excel spreadsheets to their ERP system, but that is now a thing of the past.
The Founders
The founding trio consisting of Eric Marre, Alex Schwabauer, and Denis Golovin realized over an after-work beer that there are still significant problems with automating short and recurring processes in today's world. They promptly decided to find a solution for it. All three founders are graduates of RWTH Aachen University from different fields such as computer science and environmental engineering. Denis and Eric also bring extensive professional experience in software engineering to the team. The founders are mentees of Wil van der Aalst, a visionary and pioneer in the research and application of process mining. Through collaboration with the "Process and Data Science" chair at RWTH Aachen University, they have access to the latest research findings and the opportunity to flexibly and comprehensively test new technologies.
The Team
The 16-member team at automaited is constantly growing and brings together diverse expertise in the fields of RPA, Process Mining, and AI. Their common goal is to take on the tedious tasks for you and your team, so that the annoying copy and paste work becomes a thing of the past, and you have more time for the truly important things.
Interviewed
What was the biggest challenge on your entrepreneurial journey?The entrepreneurial journey is inherently full of challenges and doesn't really get easier over time. There are always new challenges that need to be overcome.What are the next steps on your journey?We are expanding our team. We are not only looking for team members in the tech field but also in areas such as sales and finance.What were your key learnings during the financing process?Money is one thing, capabilities are another. In addition to capital, our investors have brought real value in terms of networking and strategy. We are glad to have such strong investors by our side.What role did the Aachen startup community and the digitalHUB play in your entrepreneurial journey?The Aachen startup community was our starting point. Even before we formally founded the company, we got in touch with the community through the digitalHUB and RWTH Innovation. This contact greatly facilitated our beginnings.
