Deeploi, an “IT-as-a-service” startup for SMEs, has raised $6.5 million in a seed round of funding led by European VC Atomico.
The one-year-old German startup serves to help companies reduce the friction and, ultimately, productivity loss that arises from a subpar IT setup — particularly those that lack the resources for a dedicated IT department. Indeed, Deeploi connects key IT tools and makes it easy to automate workflows around staff on- or off-boarding, device management, compliance, and cybersecurity.
Deeploi co-founder and CEO Julian Lübke considers its main competition to be legacy managed service providers (MSPs) such as Bechtle, Cancom, or Computacenter, which he says are fine for larger enterprises but don’t really cater to the “needs, budgets and resources of SMEs.” And for those seeking more modern tooling, they often have to compile disparate tools designed for specific purposes.
“On the startup end of the market, we tend to compete against costly internal IT setups with way too many expert tools that are managed by an ‘accidental’ IT owner,” Lübke told TechCrunch. “This is both inefficient and costly for the business in the longer term.”
Through Deeploi, companies can connect all their various internal applications, such as HR systems, mobile device management (MDM) software, and cybersecurity software, making it simpler to get new employees and their respective devices set up in minutes.
“All of the data becomes easily accessible for ‘accidental IT owners’ through a unified user interface,” Lübke said. “It will become the sole entry point for almost any existing vertical IT solution on the market.”
Founded out of Berlin last February, Deeploi raised a €3 million ($3.25 million) pre-seed round of funding ahed of its formal launch in the summer, and the company has gone on to grow a team of 20 and procure some 30 SME customers.
While agencies, consultancies, and startups are the core focus for now, there is scope to target a larger market segment in the future.
“The more advanced the product becomes, we unlock further target segments and customers — for example, reducing repetitive tasks for larger IT teams,” Lübke said.
Aside from lead investor Atomico, Deeploi’s seed round included participation from Cherry Ventures, which led the pre-seed round last year.
