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Yext
Yext, co-founded by Howard Lerman in 2006, structures enterprise data across search ecosystems and went public in 2017 at a $1.4B valuation.
Yext
Howard Lerman, Brent Metz, and Brian Distelburger founded Yext in Washington, D.C. in 2006, initially as a local-advertising service before pivoting to the digital knowledge management category the firm would define. The company relocated to New York and listed on the NYSE in 2017 under ticker YEXT. Today, Michael Walrath serves as CEO and Chair, having succeeded Lerman in 2022 after a multi-year board-tenure transition. Yext operates as an enterprise software company, not a traditional asset manager — its deployment model centers on annual recurring SaaS contracts rather than invested fund capital. The platform structures brand facts, locations, and product data into a knowledge graph that feeds search engines, voice assistants, and internal AI systems. Publicly disclosed customers have included Verizon, Marriott International, T-Mobile, and the World Health Organization. The firm expanded into AI-powered search through its 2024 acquisition of Hearsay Systems and the launch of a generative-AI Answers product that allows enterprises to query their own structured data. Yext reported roughly 2,900 enterprise customers as of its fiscal 2024 filings, with an annual recurring revenue run rate near $400M. The company maintains offices in New York, London, Berlin, Tokyo, and Hyderabad, reflecting a geographic footprint across North America, Europe, and Asia. March 2024: Announced the acquisition of Hearsay Systems, a compliance-focused client engagement platform for financial services, signaling a vertical push into highly regulated industries (per the firm's press release, March 2024). Yext's structural differentiator is its patented Knowledge Graph architecture that maps every entity, relationship, and data field a business wants to control across the digital ecosystem. Unlike generic CMS or SEO tools, the system is built on an ontology of industry-specific schemas — healthcare, financial services, retail — that constrain and validate data at the field level, a posture that makes it a supplier to search engines rather than a dependent of their algorithms.
General information
Firm type
Asset Manager
Year founded
2006
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
New York
Corporate office
New York, NY, United States
Principals
Howard Lerman
Co-Founder & former CEO
Michael Walrath
CEO & Chair of the Board
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
How does Yext make money?
Yext generates revenue through annual SaaS subscriptions where enterprise clients pay to manage their digital knowledge across the Yext platform. The company does not deploy invested capital into portfolio companies, funds, or co-investments — it is an operating software business, not an asset manager. As of its fiscal 2024 filings, the firm reported over $400M in annual recurring revenue.
Is Yext a family office or an operating company?
Yext is a publicly traded enterprise software company listed on the NYSE under ticker YEXT. It is not a family office, asset manager, or allocator. Founding CEO Howard Lerman transitioned to a board role in 2022, and Michael Walrath now leads the firm as CEO — standard public-company governance rather than a family office structure.
Who runs investment decisions at Yext?
As an operating company, Yext does not have an investment committee or CIO allocating capital. Strategic investment decisions — including the 2024 acquisition of Hearsay Systems — are made by CEO Michael Walrath and the board. The firm does not run a corporate venture arm or deploy third-party capital.
Does Yext participate in fund commitments or direct deals?
No. Yext is a publicly listed SaaS company with no known allocation to venture funds, private equity, hedge funds, or direct co-investments. Its capital deployment is limited to business operations, share buybacks authorized by its board, and corporate M&A transactions such as the Hearsay Systems acquisition.
What sectors does Yext's technology serve?
Yext's platform serves clients across financial services, healthcare, retail, hospitality, and telecom, with sector-specific knowledge graph schemas for regulated industries. The 2024 Hearsay acquisition deepened its focus on financial services compliance. Publicly disclosed customers include Verizon, Marriott International, and T-Mobile.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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