Every founder dreams of building something that lasts - something that defines a category, challenges the status quo, and reshapes how people work. That dream started for Jeremy and me on August 14, 2015 and it’s still driving us forward ten years later.
Legacy ticketing systems treated people like numbers, fragmenting conversations and disconnecting customers from the brands they loved. Agents were stuck in reactive loops, and companies couldn’t build real relationships at scale. So we built a platform that put the person, not the ticket, at the center.
Ten years later, that vision feels more relevant than ever.
Building the Platform That Changed the Game
From day one, Kustomer set out to do things differently. Our platform wasn’t just another help desk, it was purpose-built for support teams. We introduced the Timeline: a unified view of every conversation, every order, and every signal in one place. It gave agents the superpower of proactivity, and customers the seamless continuity they deserve.
Because we aimed to be a true system of action, we built native workflows and automations - capabilities our competitors simply didn’t offer. What our customers have built with them has far surpassed what Jeremy and I ever imagined. These features remain key differentiators today—not just because they’re built in, but because they’re endlessly flexible. If you can dream it, you can configure Kustomer to do it.
That product differentiation fueled rapid growth. We brought on some of the most customer-obsessed brands and eventually caught the attention of one of the world’s most influential tech companies.
Our Meta Chapter: Scale, Growth, and Return to Independence
In 2020, Meta announced its acquisition of Kustomer, one of its largest to date. Meta supports millions of brands and saw Kustomer as the future of CX - a differentiated platform unlike any other CX tool. Becoming part of Meta gave us reach, scale, and enterprise-grade infrastructure. It also gave us clarity. We saw what our platform could be at internet scale, and how to build for it.
In 2023, during Meta’s “Year of Efficiency”, collectively with Meta we made the joint decision to spin out Kustomer. But this wasn’t a typical divestiture. Meta believed in Kustomer when they acquired us and their divestiture reflected that continued support - partnering with us to approach our prior investors and structure us once again as a venture-backed start-up - something highly unusual in a divestiture.
Jeremy and I saw the opportunity to move faster, return to our roots, and double down on leading the next era of customer experience - this time with a focus on AI. In May 2023, we reemerged as an independent, venture backed company, with renewed focus, fresh momentum, and the backing of investors who believe in the long game.
AI Before AI Was Cool
Long before generative AI dominated headlines, we were betting on the future of automation. Our 2020 acquisition of Reply.ai was a clear signal: AI would be central to the evolution of customer service. We built early automations, smart workflows, and suggested actions that made agents faster and more effective.
In 2021, we launched our first AI features with Kustomer IQ (affectionately known as KIQ): early intelligence layers built to enhance both agent and customer experiences. KIQ delivered real-time guidance to agents and brought intelligent self-service to customers. Together, they marked the start of our belief that AI should amplify human support, not replace it - powered by context, designed for action, and deeply embedded in the platform.
All of these weren’t just experiments, they were real features, delivering real outcomes, years before “AI-native” became the buzzword it is today.
In the last two years, we’ve gone all-in, developing a fully agentic architecture and launching modular AI Agents for Customers and Reps. These aren’t chatbots. They resolve, recommend, and take action in real time, drawing from the rich customer context that lives within Kustomer.
This is the platform we’ve been building toward since day one - and we’re just getting started. Our system of action, now powered by native AI, is growing more capable every day. We’re not just keeping up with the transformation in CX + AI - we’re driving it.
What’s Next
With our recent Series B announcement, led by Norwest and supported by Redpoint, Battery, and Boldstart, we’re accelerating everything we’ve been building.
Kustomer is here to transform how businesses build relationships. That means giving brands a platform that’s flexible, deeply integrated, and truly AI-native, not just for conversations, but for action.
Kustomer is built for what CX is becoming:
- AI Agents that partner with people, not replace them
- Context-rich decisions powered by unified data
- Proactive support that starts before a ticket ever exists
And we’re just getting started.
The Village Behind the Vision
Jeremy and I can both attest: building a company is hard, and you never do it alone. Kustomer’s journey is far from over, but there’s already so much to be proud of.
To our customers: thank you for pushing and inspiring us to build better, year after year.
To our Krew: thank you for your grit, care, and unwavering commitment to our customers.
To our investors: thank you for seeing the long-term vision and standing behind it.
To Jeremy: ten years, and many more to come. I couldn’t ask for a better co-founder and teammate.
Happy anniversary, Kustomer. The next era of CX is here and we’re ready to lead it.
