Twenty, a startup with ambitious goals, is setting its sights on creating an open-source alternative to Salesforce, the leading CRM (Customer Relationship Management) platform. Salesforce has long been a dominant force in the industry, known for its comprehensive data handling capabilities, proprietary programming language, and extensive customization frameworks. However, the founders of Twenty believe that an open-source CRM can capture a significant market share by leveraging the open-source community and offering a unique, adaptable platform.
The Genesis of Twenty
Founders’ Background and Vision
The three co-founders of Twenty have a history of successful collaboration, having previously developed and sold a mini CRM for Airbnb guests and hosts, specifically designed for vacation rentals, to Airbnb. This experience laid the groundwork for their current venture into the CRM market. Observing the tech industry, they noticed a trend of open-source startups mimicking popular software-as-a-service (SaaS) products with a community-driven model. Recognizing that CRM is the largest software market, covering marketing, customer support, and operations, they saw the potential for an open-source CRM to significantly impact the industry.
Seeing the success stories of other open-source startups, they decided to pursue their vision with Twenty, focusing on developing a CRM that leverages the power and scalability of open-source technology. Their ambition is driven by the belief that current CRMs are either too rigid or too complex for many users, thus creating a market opening for a more flexible and customizable solution. By making Twenty open source, they aim to tap into the collective intelligence and innovation of a global developer community, accelerating development and adoption.
Development and Community Engagement
Twenty’s development has been ongoing for the past few years, with all its code available on GitHub under a permissive AGPLv3 license. The project has generated considerable interest, garnering over 300 contributors and 20,000 stars on GitHub in the last year alone. This enthusiasm reflects the growing interest in open-source solutions and the potential for Twenty to disrupt the CRM market. The transparency and permissiveness of its licensing model have played a crucial role in attracting a diverse group of developers interested in contributing to the platform.
The community engagement aspect is not just a side benefit but a core strategy for Twenty. By fostering an active and collaborative developer community, the platform can continuously evolve in response to users’ needs, ensuring that it remains relevant and competitive. This community-driven approach also provides a continuous feedback loop, enabling swift identification and resolution of issues, while simultaneously driving innovation. The grassroots support and constant iteration ethos stand in sharp contrast to the more closed and slower-moving nature of many established CRM products.
The Open-Source Advantage
Leveraging Community and Flexibility
CEO Félix Malfait believes that today’s landscape is more favorable for open-source software, especially as many companies rely on CRMs as the central repository for customer data. Integrating this data into products and business processes is critical, and he posits that the more a category depends on network effects, ecosystems, and extensibility, the more effective an open-source solution will become. Twenty’s approach focuses on building a flexible platform tailored to the specific needs of various companies, ensuring that its CRM can adapt to a wide range of business requirements.
Malfait’s confidence is bolstered by the increasing acceptance and trust in open-source software across various industries. Unlike proprietary systems, open-source solutions benefit from community scrutiny and collaboration, often leading to more secure, high-quality software. Additionally, open-source platforms can avoid the vendor lock-in problem, providing businesses with greater control over their software infrastructures. This flexibility and the ability to customize and extend the platform according to specific business needs can significantly reduce costs and implementation risks, making Twenty a compelling alternative to traditional CRM solutions.
Customization and Extensibility
Each entry in Twenty is an object, which can be standard, such as a person or a company, or custom, like a conference for event organizers or a restaurant for a chain manager. Users can also add custom fields to objects, allowing for a more detailed and adaptable data capture process. This customization ensures that data can be easily compared and utilized across entries. Twenty allows users to view this data directly in list or Kanban views and supports sorting, filtering, adding tasks, and notes – all typical CRM functionalities that users expect from a comprehensive platform.
Furthermore, the ability to extend objects and fields in highly customizable ways enables businesses to tailor the system to their exact needs, avoiding the common pitfalls of one-size-fits-all solutions. Organizations can build modules that cater to their unique workflows, creating an integrated system without the typically prohibitive costs and complexity of customizing proprietary software. This comprehensive customization capability is seen as one of Twenty’s major strengths, promising to provide businesses with a CRM that evolves alongside their growth and changing requirements.
Technical Capabilities and Future Goals
API Integration and Ecosystem Development
Twenty’s data can be accessed and manipulated through GraphQL and REST APIs, extending its functionality well beyond a traditional CRM. This capability is crucial for integrating with other tools and systems, making Twenty a versatile option for businesses with complex needs. API integration allows businesses to seamlessly incorporate Twenty into their existing tech stack, ensuring smooth data flow and operational efficiency. The robust API offerings are designed to encourage developers to innovate and build on top of the platform, thereby continuously enhancing its capabilities.
The long-term goal for Twenty is to foster an ecosystem of developers creating extensions and plugins that form a comprehensive suite of tools capable of competing with Salesforce. By encouraging third-party development, Twenty aims to build a rich library of add-ons and modules that can cater to a plethora of business use cases. This ecosystem will help drive adoption and ensure that the platform can meet the diverse needs of its user base. Significant attention is being given to developer support, including thorough documentation, development tools, and community forums, to streamline the process of creating and sharing new functionalities.
Workflows and Automation
While Twenty has made significant strides, there is still considerable work remaining on workflows and automation, which are essential features for a CRM to be truly competitive with established players like Salesforce. Automating routine tasks and streamlining workflows are crucial for enhancing productivity and ensuring data consistency across the organization. Twenty’s development team is focused on building these capabilities, recognizing that automation is a key factor in driving user adoption and satisfaction.
To this end, Twenty is working on integrating robust workflow automation tools that can cater to various operational needs, from simple task alerts to complex multi-step processes. These tools will help businesses automate repetitive tasks, enforce business rules, and ensure timely follow-ups, thereby reducing manual effort and minimizing the risk of errors. The goal is to create a CRM that not only captures and manages data but also actively contributes to process efficiency and business intelligence. This approach aligns with the founders’ vision of making Twenty a highly adaptable and powerful tool, capable of meeting the evolving needs of modern businesses.
Financial Backing and Industry Support
Funding Rounds and Investors
Funding for Twenty includes two rounds totaling $5 million, backed by around 50 investors. Notable figures such as Mathilde Collin (Front founder), Dharmesh Shah (HubSpot founder), Pierre Burgy and Aurélien Georget (Strapi founders), and Sergei Anikin (former CEO/CTO at Pipedrive) have invested in the startup. Runa Capital, Y Combinator, and Automattic have also shown their support, providing the financial backing needed to drive the project forward. This strong financial support underscores the confidence that industry leaders have in Twenty’s potential to disrupt the CRM market.
These investments are not just about the capital; they bring a wealth of experience and knowledge from established leaders in the tech industry. The involvement of such high-profile investors provides Twenty with valuable mentorship and strategic guidance, helping navigate the challenges of scaling an open-source project. Their backing is a testament to the viability and promise of Twenty’s innovative approach. The funds are being utilized to expand the development team, enhance infrastructure, and accelerate the rollout of key features that are critical for competing with entrenched CRM giants like Salesforce.
Strategic Vision and Long-Term Goals
The founders of Twenty are confident that an open-source CRM solution could attract a significant share of the market. They aim to leverage the benefits of the open-source community, providing a unique and adaptable platform that can be easily modified and tailored to meet diverse business needs. By tapping into the collaborative and innovative nature of the open-source ecosystem, Twenty believes it can create a robust CRM that offers the flexibility and scalability businesses require without the limitations and costs associated with proprietary software. This strategy highlights their commitment to fostering a more inclusive, community-driven approach to CRM software development.