Marketplaces for review-based software and services are beginning to reach their sell-by date. User-generated reviews on sites like G2 and Capterra (one of Gartner's three software directories) have often been accused of being paid for by software vendors. In fact, 8 out of 9 reviews on the first page of G2 reviews on HubSpot are labeled “Incentivized Reviews.” Born from the AI pioneers behind Jukedeck, Stackfix has raised $3 million in seed funding to use AI to test and review software on behalf of humans, bringing a high level of transparency and independence to the process. This is a startup that introduced gender.
Stackfix was founded in 2023 by Paddy Stobbs (previously co-founder of Jukedeck, which was acquired by TikTok) and Camin McCluskey (ex-Skyscanner).
After Jukedeck, Stobbs joined London-based Accelerator Entrepreneur First as an advisor. The most common question from startups there was, “What software should I use for XYZ?” He used this as inspiration to come up with this startup.
Software review marketplaces allow vendors to pay to appear higher in search results. Meanwhile, the industry is rife with bribery by giving five-star reviews for software products they have never used, often with credit for the software in question. And finally, hours of endless Google searches, scouring blogs, reading reviews, and asking friends no longer address the problems most businesses face when choosing software. Masu.
Ironically, the problem is actually made worse by AI. As AI makes it easier to build software, the sheer amount of software out there means that review-based approaches start to squeak under the weight of new releases.
Stackfix tests software products in real-time and provides up-to-date, standardized datasets for evaluating software products. This allows you to use an AI approach rather than a user review approach to provide insights on price, features, and performance to buyers, making it highly gamified.
“G2/Capterra relies on user-generated reviews to understand its software products,” Stobbs told Techcrunch. “This method is no longer fit for purpose. User-generated reviews cannot be trusted. , quickly becomes outdated and not comprehensive.”
The company says companies in Europe and North America are using Stackfix in private beta and have already generated some revenue.
Chalfen Ventures led the funding round, with participation from Seedcamp and helloworld.
Mike Chalfen, general partner at Chalfen Ventures, said in a statement: “For small and medium-sized businesses, the software purchasing process is often slow, complex, and expensive. Stackfix leverages AI to simplify the entire process.”
Stackfix is also backed by angel investors including Mehdi Ghissassi (Head of Product at DeepMind), Matt Clifford (Chairman of Entrepreneur First) and other angels.