Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
What is happening?
This marks Thoughtworks’ sixth acquisition in the last three years.
Watchful’s team of seven employees and technology assets are joining Thoughtworks.
The acquisition further strengthens Thoughtworks’ capabilities in AI, data and LLMs.
The Watchful team brings a wealth of experience and will help us accelerate growth in AI, data and LLMs which are all key strategic focus areas for us.
This is an exciting new chapter in the Thoughtworks story and we will do everything we can to ensure the team's smooth and seamless integration into Thoughtworks.
Why did Thoughtworks decide to acquire Watchful?
We aspire to be a recognized AI transformation partner. When clients want to integrate AI into their business, we want them to think of Thoughtworks first.
Just as we’ve done with prior paradigm shifts, we’ll earn this by being on the leading edge of AI: researching, identifying and amplifying key trends and developing best-in-class practices to apply them. This acquisition accelerates that journey.
We’ve seen that a lot of clients are past the “exploration” stage and looking to put use cases into production. But most are getting stuck moving beyond the proof of concept stage.
Together with the Watchful software platform, we’ll focus on addressing the systemic challenges which prevent clients from getting AI models into production and realizing its full value.
We’ll infuse Watchful technology in several of our Data and AI services.
We’ll also jointly develop the research, accelerators and expertise which help take on one of the biggest challenges to getting GenAI models into production: clients’ inability to confidently answer the questions inherent in building atop a set of “black box” LLMs (e.g. how do I know if the LLM outputs are accurate? Which model / approach is best for my use case?)
Will Watchful's founders be staying on?
Watchful's entire team is joining Thoughtworks, including Shayan Mohanty and John Singleton the co-founders. Both will play key roles within the team reporting to Mike Mason, Thoughtworks’ Chief AI Officer.
How will clients benefit?
This acquisition improves Thoughtworks’ ability to support and service clients who are looking to realize the value of AI.
Watchful technology will be infused into several Thoughtworks AI and data services through accelerators supporting a wide range of uses, including:
Knowledge graph, text classification and taxonomy creation
AI-assisted data labeling
Accelerated data discovery (esp. unstructured data)
And in the near future, atop Data Mesh to help create contextual business data from data products.
These technology-enabled services help clients see faster time-to-value on their AI projects and get more use cases beyond proof of concept stages and into production.
In addition, Thoughtworks is committed to advancing research and expertise development associated with the independent evaluation of LLM accuracy, efficacy, costs and risks.
Clients will benefit from this research through greater confidence deploying their GenAI models into production.
What was the purchase price?
The financial terms of the deal are not being publicly disclosed.
What will happen with Watchful’s current business?
While Thoughtworks has acquired personnel and technology from Watchful, this transaction does not include the acquisition of Watchful's business operations.
Customers who purchased subscriptions to use Watchful software may continue using the product until the expiration of the current term of their subscription.
The contracts will not be renewed once they reach the end of the current term of their subscription period. Customers may choose to receive services from Thoughtworks.
Thoughtworks will provide support to Watchful so it can support these clients as needed during the remaining term of their subscription period.
Accordingly, the Watchful brand and legacy business will wind down over time.