More than eight years ago, we decided to formalize our long-standing interest in artificial intelligence by creating a dedicated AI task force. At the time, our objective was simple: to understand the implications of a rapidly evolving technology and harness its potential. Today, the changes driven by AI have gone even beyond what we initially anticipated, without challenging our investment strategy. On the contrary, AI is reinforcing it.

Since its inception, Keensight has been built around a simple conviction: the most resilient businesses are category leaders operating in specialized markets, with deep domain expertise and software or services that have become mission-critical to their customers. That conviction has shaped a portfolio with strong exposure to vertical B2B software, technology services, and healthcare. Looking back, it is a strategy that appears particularly well suited to the AI era.

The Real Barrier to Entry Is No Longer the Model

One of the most significant developments over the past two years has been the rapid commoditization of foundation models. Model performance continues to improve, but access to cutting-edge capabilities is becoming increasingly widespread. As a result, competitive advantage is shifting.

Today, the real differentiators are proprietary data, embedded workflows, seamless integration into customers’ operations, and deep sector expertise. In other words, models are increasingly becoming commodities; durable value lies in domain knowledge. This is precisely the type of company we have always sought to back.

Europe is particularly well positioned in this respect. The region is home to thousands of category leaders operating in complex vertical markets, where regulatory expertise, specialized functionality, and close customer relationships create meaningful barriers to entry. In these industries, AI is not replacing existing software – it is making it smarter, more valuable, and even more indispensable.

AI Is Reinforcing Many Market Leaders Rather Than Disrupting Them

Early narratives suggested that artificial intelligence would fundamentally reshape competitive dynamics across every industry.

What we are observing is more nuanced.

Companies with large installed customer bases, proprietary datasets, and deeply embedded products are often the best positioned to integrate AI capabilities quickly and successfully. This is particularly true for mission-critical software.

When software sits at the heart of essential business processes – whether, for example, ensuring regulatory compliance or managing critical infrastructure – it cannot simply be replaced overnight. In these environments, AI enhances the value of existing platforms rather than making them obsolete.

We are already seeing this across our portfolio.

At Actico, AI is improving credit decision automation while building on years of proprietary data and regulatory expertise.

Onventis, a German provider of Source-to-Pay solutions, has developed an AI agent platform that automates key procurement processes while ensuring strong data governance, full traceability, and regulatory compliance.

In addition, AI is creating strong growth opportunities across several technology services domains.

At Nomios, for example, the rapid adoption of AI is driving increased demand for cybersecurity services, particularly around AI governance, infrastructure protection, and securing AI-enabled environments.

Valiantys is leveraging AI as a strategic growth pillar, creating new opportunities to help clients transform the way they manage, automate, and optimize their workflows.

These examples illustrate a broader trend: AI is increasingly acting as a value multiplier rather than a source of disruption.

Private Equity Is Entering a New Era

Artificial intelligence is also reshaping our own industry. For decades, competitive advantage in private equity was built on access, relationships, and capital. Those fundamentals remain essential. But they are now being complemented by a new capability: transforming vast amounts of information into faster, better-informed, and more consistent investment decisions.

At Keensight, this transformation now extends across our entire investment lifecycle. We use AI to enhance sourcing, deepen market analysis, strengthen due diligence, monitor portfolio companies more effectively, and support management teams throughout their value creation journey.

Our ambition is not simply to use more AI tools it is to become an AI-first investor, fundamentally redesigning how we work around the capabilities these technologies make possible.

Three Priorities Guide Our Approach

From Experimentation to Industrialization

We have entered a new phase. The question is no longer whether AI works. The question is how to deploy it securely, responsibly, and at scale. Achieving that requires strong governance, high-quality data, robust cybersecurity, and effective change management.

The organizations that succeed will be those capable of combining technological excellence with deep domain expertise and operational discipline.

A Transformation Comparable to the Greatest Software Revolutions

For more than fifty years, every major technological shift has expanded the software industry rather than diminished it. We believe AI belongs firmly within that tradition.

Yet it represents something even more profound. Artificial intelligence is transforming how companies build products, make decisions, serve customers, and organize their operations. For a specialist technology investor like Keensight, this represents an extraordinary opportunity. Our ambition remains unchanged: to support category-leading businesses through their next phase of growth.

Artificial intelligence provides unprecedented opportunities to accelerate that journey.

And we believe the companies that successfully combine domain expertise, proprietary data, operational excellence, and AI will be the defining winners of the next decade.