ThoughtWorks, a global software consultancy, announced its second acquisition in 2021 and has agreed to acquire Fourkind, a privately-held Finnish consulting services firm that combines machine learning and data science with strategy, design and engineering.
Founded in 2017 in Helsinki, the company now has a 40-strong team of data scientists, machine learning experts, designers, engineers and strategists and has worked with 80+ organizations in 10+ countries.
Fourkind’s 40 employees will continue to operate from their existing premises in Helsinki and Amsterdam. The founders and leadership team will remain in post after the acquisition to grow and evolve the business.
“We have been on the hunt for a company that will help us accelerate growth in our key strategic focus areas of data, digital transformation, enterprise modernization and customer experience. We are delighted that Fourkind will be joining the ThoughtWorks family. The Fourkind team’s blend of machine learning, data science, strategy, design and engineering has helped their clients lower the perceived risk of adopting new approaches to artificial intelligence. We were impressed with their track record of delivering significant return on investment for their clients’ AI and machine learning investments. We believe that our complementary strengths and culture make Fourkind and ThoughtWorks a winning combination,” said Guo Xiao, president and chief executive officer, ThoughtWorks.
“When we set up Fourkind, our vision was to help forward-looking organizations create futureproof services and products. We are best-known for ground breaking innovation in utilising machine learning in ways that are breaking boundaries of what has previously been considered possible. We believe that being part of ThoughtWorks will offer us the opportunity to grow faster and be part of an agile and successful global team of like-minded passionate technologists who want to make an extraordinary impact in the world,” said Jonne Heikkinen, managing director & one of the founding partners, Fourkind.
This acquisition will grow Fourkind and expand ThoughtWorks’ European footprint and significantly improve ThoughtWorks ability to support and service clients in Finland, the Netherlands and the Nordics.