About Powerset
Powerset is a Technology company based in San Francisco (United States) founded in 2006, and was acquired by Microsoft in June 2008. AI-enabled keyword based search-engine. Powerset has raised $12.5 million across 2 funding rounds from investors including Microsoft, Foundation Capital and Founders Fund. Its focus areas include Consumer, Search Engines, Keyword Based Search Engines and High Tech. Its competitors include Google, Elastic and Primer; 3 of its 3 listed competitors have raised funding.
Company details
AI-enabled keyword-based search-engine. The platform enables users to search for data by using keywords and the system uses natural language processing algorithm to understand the meaning of semantic meaning behind the search and provide optimized search results for users.
- Headquarters San Francisco, United States
- Stage Acquired
- SectorsTechnology
- Website powerset.com
- Social LinkedIn X
- Acquired by Microsoft (Jun 2008)
Funding Insights of Powerset
Powerset has successfully raised a total of $12.5M across 2 strategic funding rounds. The most recent funding activity was a Debt β Conventional round of $8 million completed in January 2007. 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 $12.5M
- Total Rounds 2
- Last Round Debt – Conventional β $8M
- First Round $12.5M
(Nov 2006)
- Investors Count 4
All 2 funding rounds of Powerset 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2007 | $8M | Debt – Conventional | β | β | β |
| Nov 2006 | $12.5M | Series A | β | β |
5 investors in total: 5 institutional.
Investors in Powerset
Powerset has secured backing from 5 investors, including venture fund and institutional investors. Prominent investors backing the company include Microsoft, Foundation Capital and Founders Fund.
| Investor | Description | Founded Year | Domain | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Venture capital firm focused on early-stage fintech, enterprise, web 3, consumer, and multiple sectors | 1995 | foundationcapital.com | Palo Alto, United States | |
Venture capital investments in technology and defense sectors. | foundersfund.com | |||
Investment management and philanthropic ventures linked to Bezos Expeditions. | bezosexpeditions.com | |||
Investments in technology startups are made by Felicis Ventures. | felicis.com | Menlo Park, United States | ||
Microsoft is recognized for software, hardware, and gaming solutions. | 1975 | microsoft.com | Redmond, United States |
Investor details for Powerset
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.
Timeline of Powerset
4 dated milestones of Powerset across 2 years, from founding to its latest funding, stage changes and deals.
- Founded Powerset is founded.
- Funding First funding round of $12.5M.
- Funding Latest funding round, Debt β Conventional, of $8.0M.
- Exit Acquired by Microsoft.
Competitors of Powerset
Powerset has 3 listed competitors in our database, 3 of them funded. They include Google, Elastic and Primer.
| Company Name | Domain | Founded | HQ Location | Total funding | Employees | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| google.com | 1998 | Mountain View, United States | $34.02M | 183,323 | A technology company offering products and services, including search engine, cloud computing, advertising, email, productivity software, and more | |
| elastic.co | 2012 | Mountain View, United States | $104M | 3,187 | Cloud based text analytics platform | |
| primer.ai | 2015 | San Francisco, United States | $222.7M | 194 | AI based text summarization and contextualization software tool |
Detailed competitors of Powerset
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 Powerset
Websites that share an audience with Powerset (powerset.com).
Websites whose visitors overlap most with Powerset. Affinity shows how closely the audiences match.
| Website | Domain | Audience affinity | Monthly visits | Global rank | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
mahalo.com | mahalo.com | 100% | β | ||
ringofsaturn.com | ringofsaturn.com | 78% | β | ||
| bing.com | 76% | 3.5B | #10 | View details | |
| hakia.com | 76% | 14.9K | #2,907,828 | View details | |
cuil.com | cuil.com | 76% | β | ||
| β’β’β’β’β’β’β’β’β’β’ | β’β’β’β’β’β’.com | β’β’% | β’.β’M | #β’β’β’β’β’ | β |
| β’β’β’β’β’β’β’β’β’β’ | β’β’β’β’β’β’.com | β’β’% | β’.β’M | #β’β’β’β’β’ | β |
| β’β’β’β’β’β’β’β’β’β’ | β’β’β’β’β’β’.com | β’β’% | β’.β’M | #β’β’β’β’β’ | β |
All 21 similar websites and full traffic analytics for Powerset
The complete similar-websites list, audience overlap and engagement analytics require an active premium plan.
- 21 similar websites
- Audience overlap
- Engagement analytics
- Traffic by brand
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Top companies in Search, Discovery & Knowledge Tools
3 companies that operate in the same segment as Powerset (Search, Discovery & Knowledge Tools) in United States, ranked by their profile score on The Company Check.
| Company | Description | Founded | Location | Total funding | Revenue | Employees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Citation-based AI answer engine with real-time sourcing is operated. | 2022 | San Francisco, California, United States | USD 1.72 B | 1,401 | ||
A technology company offering products and services, including search engine, cloud computing, advertising, email, productivity software, and more | 1998 | Mountain View, California, United States | USD 34.02 M | |||
Keyword-based private search engine for user privacy is provided online. | 2008 | Paoli, Pennsylvania, United States | USD 113 M |
Unlock complete access to The Company Check
Get unrestricted viewing across everything we track β 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 Powerset
Complete news archive for Powerset
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 Powerset
Powerset was founded in 2006.
Powerset is headquartered in San Francisco, United States. It is registered at San Francisco, California, United States.
Powerset is a funded company, having raised a total of $12.5M across 2 funding rounds to date. The company's 1st funding round was a Series A of $12.5M, raised on Nov 2006.
AI-enabled keyword-based search-engine. The platform enables users to search for data by using keywords and the system uses natural language processing algorithm to understand the meaning of semantic meaning behind the search and provide optimized search results for users.
Powerset has 5 investors. Key investors include Microsoft, Foundation Capital, Founders Fund, Bezos Expeditions, and Felicis Ventures.
Yes. Powerset was acquired by Microsoft in June 2008.

