Ghent-based AI startup Tekst has raised $13.5 million in a Series A funding round led by venture firm Elephant. Founded in 2022, the company is pioneering "Process Intelligence" to solve a critical challenge in enterprise AI adoption. Tekst's platform helps businesses automate complex back-office operations by enabling AI to understand how work actually gets done.
Addressing the Enterprise AI Gap
Many companies struggle to achieve returns on AI investments because the technology lacks crucial business context. According to Tekst, these vital processes are not formally documented but are embedded in emails and employee experience. This gap prevents AI agents from moving beyond simple tasks to handle the reality of enterprise workflows.
Tekst's platform bypasses time-consuming analysis by automatically reconstructing business processes from existing digital communications. The system observes the daily trail of employee work to map how messages trigger corresponding actions and decisions. This approach illuminates critical back-office functions that have historically resisted automation.
The Power of Process Intelligence
The company defines Process Intelligence as an essential layer between a business's core systems and its AI agents. This technology discovers the real workflow, understands the context behind each decision, and allows AI to operate safely within that model. The goal is to transform AI from a promising demo into a reliable digital colleague for high-volume tasks.
Wouter Janssen, CEO and co-founder of Tekst, explained that the processes running a business are not written down. "They live in emails, in PDFs, in people's heads," he stated, adding that their technology surfaces this hidden knowledge. He believes this is the key to using AI on a different level and seeing real returns.
Strategic Focus and Market Validation
Tekst is initially targeting the notoriously complex quote-to-cash cycle as its primary market. This process is fundamental to revenue generation but remains a largely manual effort in most organizations. Success here will pave the way for expansion into other functions like procure-to-pay and claims handling.
The platform has gained traction with clients like Daikin Europe, Colruyt Group, and Becton Dickinson. At Becton Dickinson, a global medical technology leader, Tekst's solution automated 90 percent of a targeted process within three weeks. This rapid deployment showcases the platform's effectiveness in real-world enterprise environments.
Investor Confidence and Future Growth
Investors have expressed confidence in Tekst's unique approach to solving the AI implementation puzzle. Matt Tanenblatt of Elephant highlighted the company's understanding of the missing process intelligence layer needed for reliable AI agents. Pieterjan Bouten of Entourage praised the technology for delivering in weeks what consultants take months to achieve.
The $13.5 million investment will accelerate product development and support international expansion. Tekst plans to double its team from 35 to 70 employees by the end of 2026. Hiring will focus on strengthening its engineering and go-to-market capabilities to serve a growing global customer base.
This Series A funding marks a significant milestone for Tekst, validating its vision for Process Intelligence. By equipping AI with the deep process understanding it currently lacks, the company is poised to help businesses automate their most critical back-office functions. The investment empowers Tekst to scale its operations and close the gap between AI's promise and its practical application.