Trentino-based Smartness secures €47M to expand its AI operations.

      The Trentino-based Smartness tech travel startup has secured €47 million in a Series B funding round, which is the largest amount raised by an Italian vertical SaaS company and includes both primary and secondary equity, as well as debt.

      Smartness is a technology firm that provides business-to-business (B2B) Software as a Service (SaaS) specifically designed for the hospitality sector, helping businesses with digitalization and enhancing their operational processes. For example, Smartness software facilitates automation in various workflows within the industry, including customer service, administrative tasks, daily operations, marketing campaigns, management, and accounting, both online and offline.

      The funding round was led by United Ventures and CDP Venture Capital, with participation from Partech, a previous investor from a €13 million Series A funding round in 2023. This latest funding raises Smartness’s overall capital to over €60 million. CEO and co-founder Luca Rodella informed EU-Startups that the company has already surpassed the €10 million revenue milestone and possesses the necessary resources to scale towards €100 million, aiming ultimately to become a €1 billion leader in its category.

      Founded in 2020, Smartness started as a dynamic pricing software provider and has since diversified into CRM, property management systems, and operational AI solutions, serving over 5,000 clients in 41 countries. The company has experienced a 10% organic growth each month, not taking into account acquisition contributions, and claims to have grown more than 6x.

      Within the competitive landscape of hospitality, various European startups are securing funding to promote the adoption of specialized software and AI technologies in the sector, totaling €343 million. For instance, Amsterdam-based hospitality tech platform Mews raised €255 million in Series D funding to invest further in AI, automation, and agent-driven workflows in hotel operations. German-based Nesto obtained €11 million to expand its AI workforce management platform for restaurant groups, and happyhotel secured €6.5 million in Series A funding to create AI agents for hotel revenue management, among others.

      Smartness has completed several mergers and acquisitions and aims to develop the world’s first Agentic System for hotels and vacation rentals. With this funding round, Smartness intends to enhance its competitive edge in the hospitality industry by leveraging the current demand for AI-powered operational systems.