Semantix is a leading data software platform having strong presence across the Americas. Founded in 2010, the Brazil-based company provides technology solutions in areas like artificial intelligence, Big Data, quantum computing and the internet of things. It is on a mission to transform businesses into data-driven model through innovative and disruptive solutions.
Recently, the management revealed plans to take the company public through a SPAC merger. After that, it is expected to trade on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the ticker symbol STIX. We had a conversation with Semantix’s chief executive officer Leonardo Santos, who provided valuable insights into the various aspects of the business and the broad market.
Why have you chosen the SPAC route for the public listing, rather than going for a traditional IPO?
Going public has always been our vision for the company. When we met the team at Alpha Capital, we knew that they would be the perfect SPAC partner for Semantix because our long-term goals were very aligned. We believe that this partnership will empower us to combine our similar ambitions and accelerate Semantix’s growth pace as a leading end-to-end data analytics platform provider.
How did the pandemic affect Semantix, and to what extent did the widespread digital transformation help the business remain resilient to the crisis?
The pandemic had a significant impact on the world economy overall. One of the biggest business trends we saw from the pandemic was an increase in digital transformation, digital payments penetration, online commerce, and more. As a result, we saw a substantial increase in data usage across many of our clients, which meant a greater reliance on our technology and services to help them manage and make sense of the influx of data. Demand went up and continues to increase as more businesses embrace the digital future.
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Can you provide some insights into your expansion plans, both in Latin America and in the international market; and what is the main growth strategy?
We are a global company and we expect to continue to grow our footprint as customer momentum continues to accelerate. We already have traction in Brazil and Latin America, with an emerging presence in the U.S., and we expect to see even more growth in each of those markets. We also see a fantastic opportunity for expansion in Europe and, eventually, Asia in the future.
We’re excited about the growth opportunity ahead. When I think about our strategy, one of the main areas of focus will be R&D. We believe it will be a cornerstone to our future success. We expect to continue to invest in that area as we increase our market share. We believe this investment will help us push the envelope of innovation with new products and capabilities within the platform – providing more value to our customer and keeping us a step ahead of the competition.
What are your views on the evolution of artificial intelligence and big data, and how is it going to transform the digital world?
The business is more complex than ever and every day more decisions need to be made in real-time. With new data sources introduced daily and new business priorities – it’s difficult to make the right choices and discern what’s working and what’s not on a typical business day. We see artificial intelligence as a critical extension of the enterprise of the future, helping business leaders leverage data as a strategic differentiator with instantaneous insights that would take a single human year to discover. We expect that ubiquitous artificial intelligence will result in an increase in business advancements and an increase in the performance rate that will change the digital world and the physical world for the better.
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Where do you see Semantix five years from now?
We believe there is so much potential ahead for Semantix. Within the next five years, we expect a sea change across digital technology that is fueled by the ubiquity of AI. We are transitioning from the digital era to the data era and AI will only accelerate the volume and pace of data needs across the enterprise. I also expect that new channels will result in a host of new business solutions and data sets that will be critical for the enterprise.
We believe Semantix sits well-positioned to capture all these trends, helping clients derive value from the data with its end-to-end platform for data analytics. In five years, we expect that our company will be a publicly-traded, global company with a presence across many strategic locations around the globe including the United States, Europe, and Asia – and we will continue to innovate to meet the demands and needs of our customers as the market evolves.