About Applause
Applause is a Technology company based in Framingham (United States) founded in 1966, and was acquired by Testimonial Hero in November 2020. Crowdsourced testing platforms are offered for software quality assurance. Applause has raised $115.9 million across 8 funding rounds from investors including Goldman Sachs, Accenture and Credit Suisse. Applause has completed 2 acquisitions, including Apphance and Test Hub. Its website applause.com draws about 585 thousand monthly visits. Applause offers products and services including Crowdtesting, Manual Functional Testing, Automated Functional Testing, Accessibility Testing, and AI Training and Testing. Its focus areas include Enterprise Infrastructure, Software Testing Tools, Testing Methodologies and Crowdsourced Testing. Its legal entity is Applause App Quality, Inc. Its competitors include Bugcrowd, Rainforest QA and Ubertesters; 3 of its 3 listed competitors have raised funding.
Company details
Applause was founded in 1966 and is headquartered in Framingham, United States. Operations focus on the software testing sector, where crowdsourced solutions are provided for automated testing, user experience evaluation, AI-driven assessments, and security checks. Integration with development tools, APIs, bug tracking systems, and verification environments is supported. Codeless automation and test case management features are included to streamline processes.
- Headquarters Framingham, United States
- Stage Acquired
- SectorsTechnology
- Website applause.com
- Social LinkedIn X Facebook Instagram YouTube
- Acquired by Testimonial Hero (Nov 2020)
- Legal Name Applause App Quality, Inc.
- Total Equity Funding$115.9M (USD)
in 8 rounds
- Latest Funding Round$35.1M (USD), Series F
Dec 2016
- InvestorsGoldman Sachs
& 11 more
- Investments & AcquisitionsApphance
& 1 more
- Acquired by
Products & Services of Applause
Applause offers a comprehensive portfolio of products and services, including Crowdtesting, Manual Functional Testing, Automated Functional Testing, Accessibility Testing, and AI Training and Testing.
Community-based testing for digital quality and real-world feedback
Manual checks for app bugs and usability issues
Automated processes for efficient app functionality testing
Ensures digital products are inclusive for all users
Evaluates AI models for accuracy and bias reduction
Apps and channels of Applause
its YouTube channel Applause has 864 subscribers and 30 videos.
Videos from Applause
The most watched videos on Applause's YouTube channel, Applause (864 subscribers). Click a video to play it here.
More on Applause.
Funding Insights of Applause
Applause has successfully raised a total of $115.9M across 8 strategic funding rounds. The most recent funding activity was a Series F round of $35.1 million completed in December 2016. This substantial capital infusion reflects strong investor confidence in the company's business model, growth potential, and market opportunities. The funding enables strategic expansion, product development, market penetration, and operational scaling to drive long-term value creation and competitive advantage.
- Total Funding $115.9M
- Total Rounds 8
- Last Round Series F — $35.1M
- Investors Count 10
All 8 funding rounds of Applause with amounts and investors; the two latest post-money valuations are shown, the rest are part of the premium plan.
| Date | Amount | Transaction Name | Valuation | Lead Investors | Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2016 | $35.1M | Series F | – | Credit Suisse | |
| Jan 2014 | $43M | Series E | – | Goldman Sachs | |
| Dec 2011 | $17M | Series D | – | QuestMark Partners | |
| Sep 2010 | $13M | Series C | – | – | |
| Dec 2008 | $5M | Series B | – | – | |
| Jan 2008 | $500,000 | Series A | – | – | |
| Oct 2007 | $2.3M | Series A | – | Mesco, MassVentures | – |
| Sep 1997 | Unspecified | – | – |
12 investors in total: 12 institutional.
Investors in Applause
Applause has secured backing from 12 investors, including institutional and venture fund investors. Prominent investors backing the company include Goldman Sachs, Accenture and Credit Suisse.
| Investor | Description | Founded Year | Domain | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Expansion stage tech-focused VC firm investing primarily in the US | questm.com | Baltimore, United States | ||
Early-stage venture capital investments are focused on US companies. | scalevp.com | Foster City, United States | ||
Waiting list management and analyses services in the technology sector. | longworth.com | |||
Tech focused early stage VC firm investing in the US | mass-ventures.com | Boston, United States | ||
Investment banking services are delivered across multiple financial sectors. | 1869 | goldmansachs.com | New York, United States | |
Family office investing in early-stage startups | egancapital.com | Boston, United States | ||
Private equity investments are managed from Newport Beach, United States. | windjammercapital.com | Newport Beach, United States | ||
Investments are directed toward high-growth enterprise software and technology companies. | vistaequitypartners.com | Austin, United States | ||
Wealth management, asset management, and investment banking services are offered. | 1856 | credit-suisse.com | Zurich, Switzerland | |
IT and management consultancy services are provided globally. | 1989 | accenture.com | Dublin, Ireland |
Investor details for Applause
The complete investor list, round-by-round participation and investor portfolios require an active premium plan.
- Complete investor list
- Round participation
- Investor portfolios
- Co-investor network
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
People of Applause
219 people are tracked at Applause (30 in leadership, 7 in board & advisors, 182 in team).
| Name | Role | Group |
|---|---|---|
Rob Mason | CTO | Leadership |
Jan Wolter | General Manager, Applause EU | Leadership |
Luke Damian | Chief Growth Officer | Leadership |
Bradley Batchelder | Chief People Officer | Leadership |
Suzanne Gilfix | VP, General Counsel | Leadership |
Christopher Jolie | CFO | Leadership |
Chris Gianelloni | Director Of Platform Engineering | Leadership |
Chris Malone | Chief Executive Officer | Leadership |
Stacy Betancourt | Vice President Of People Operations | Leadership |
Fionn Cai | Enterprise Account Director | Leadership |
Jeff Rosenberg | Vice President Of Engineering | Leadership |
Scott Hackett | Vice President, Testing Services & Global Community | Leadership |
John Keeter | Director, Community Partner Management | Leadership |
Mike Trudell | Vice President, Head Of Worldwide Business Development | Leadership |
Garin Sweet | Senior Director, North American BD & Global BD Operations | Leadership |
Maria Castañeda | Senior Director Business Development EMEA & APAC | Leadership |
Jessica Haskell | Senior Vice President Finance | Leadership |
Cody Frost | Senior Director Of Finance | Leadership |
Chris Munroe | Vice President, AI Strategic Programs | Leadership |
Nick Quattro | Director Of Strategic Account Management | Leadership |
199 more people are available in the full profile.
Complete people profiles for Applause
Full employee and board profiles, team structure, tenure and professional contact details require an active premium plan.
- Full employee list
- Team structure
- Board tenure
- Professional contacts
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Investments & Acquisitions by Applause
Applause has strategically engaged in corporate development activities, having acquired 2 companies. Notable acquisitions include Apphance and Test Hub.
| Company Name | Description | Domain | Location | Founded | Acquired | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Crowdsourced app testing on real devices is facilitated. | testhub.com | Berlin, Germany | 2011 | May 2014 | •••• | |
Usability testing tool for developers to detect crashes and get user feedback | apphance.com | Warsaw, Poland | 2008 | Aug 2012 | •••• |
Complete acquisition details for Applause
Acquired stakes, deal sources and the complete acquisition history require an active premium plan.
- Acquired stakes
- Deal sources
- Complete history
- Exports
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Timeline of Applause
7 dated milestones of Applause across 54 years, from founding to its latest funding, stage changes and deals.
- Founded Applause is founded.
- Funding First funding round.
- Acquisition Acquires Apphance.
- Acquisition Acquires Test Hub.
- Funding Latest funding round, Series F, of $35.1M.
- Exit Acquired by Vista Equity Partners.
- Exit Acquired by Testimonial Hero.
Competitors of Applause
Applause has 3 listed competitors in our database, 3 of them funded. They include Bugcrowd, Rainforest QA and Ubertesters.
| Company Name | Domain | Founded | HQ Location | Total funding | Employees | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| bugcrowd.com | 2012 | San Francisco, United States | $183.69M | 131 | Crowdsourced penetration testing for web applications is provided. | |
| rainforestqa.com | 2012 | San Francisco, United States | $41.12M | 15 | QA as a service | |
| ubertesters.com | 2012 | San Francisco, United States | $250,000 | Mobile application beta testing platform |
Detailed competitors of Applause
The full competitor set, operating metrics and side-by-side benchmarks require an active premium plan.
- Full competitor set
- Operating metrics
- Benchmarks
- Competitive positioning
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Web traffic of Applause
The website of Applause (applause.com) receives about 585.1K visits a month.
- Monthly visits585.1K
▲ 11.9% vs previous month
Websites whose visitors overlap most with Applause. Affinity shows how closely the audiences match.
| Website | Domain | Audience affinity | Monthly visits | Global rank | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| flurry.com | 100% | 15.1K | #1,774,817 | View details | |
| utest.com | 92% | #35,012 | View details | ||
count.ly | count.ly | 76% | #8,846,894 | – | |
usability.gov | usability.gov | 75% | – | ||
| surveymonkey.com | 74% | 38.3M | #1,421 | View details | |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
All 40 similar websites and full traffic analytics for Applause
The complete similar-websites list, audience overlap and engagement analytics require an active premium plan.
- 40 similar websites
- Audience overlap
- Engagement analytics
- Traffic by brand
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Top companies in Programming & Software Development Tools
3 companies that operate in the same segment as Applause (Programming & Software Development Tools) in United States, ranked by their profile score on The Company Check.
| Company | Description | Founded | Location | Total funding | Revenue | Employees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Collaborative platform for design prototyping and feedback is provided. | 2012 | San Francisco, California, United States | USD 748.62 M | 2,877 | ||
AI-based platform for secure collaboration and content management is utilized. | 2005 | Redwood City, California, United States | USD 692.63 M | USD 1.18 B | 4,447 | |
Automated usability testing and feedback for mobile experiences is provided. | 2007 | San Francisco, California, United States | USD 148.5 M | USD 21.68 M | 557 |
Unlock complete access to The Company Check
Get unrestricted viewing across everything we track — from companies and brands to investors, funding rounds, acquisitions, financials, and more.
- Unlimited viewing on all profiles Companies, investors, financials, funding, acquisitions & directors
- Full access to every database India & global coverage, advanced filters and rich profile details
- Always-on access from your team account Single premium plan for everything you see on the portal
Related news about Applause
Complete news archive for Applause
Full article history, source details, and older brand coverage require an active premium plan.
- Full article archive
- Source and publication date
- Older coverage
- Brand-specific news history
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Frequently Asked Questions about Applause
Applause was founded in 1966 and raised its 1st funding round 31 years after it was founded.
Applause is headquartered in Framingham, United States. It is registered at Framingham, Massachusetts, United States.
Applause is a funded company, having raised a total of $115.9M across 8 funding rounds to date.
Applause was founded in 1966 and is headquartered in Framingham, United States. Operations focus on the software testing sector, where crowdsourced solutions are provided for automated testing, user experience evaluation, AI-driven assessments, and security checks. Integration with development tools, APIs, bug tracking systems, and verification environments is supported. Codeless automation and test case management features are included to streamline processes.
Applause's top competitors include Bugcrowd, Rainforest QA and Ubertesters.
Applause offers Crowdtesting, Manual Functional Testing, Automated Functional Testing, Accessibility Testing, and AI Training and Testing.
Applause has 12 investors. Key investors include Goldman Sachs, Accenture, Credit Suisse, QuestMark Partners, and Scale Venture Partners.
Applause operates through Applause App Quality, Inc..
Yes. Applause was acquired by Testimonial Hero in November 2020.
The website of Applause receives about 585 thousand visits a month.