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If this, then cash? IFTTT announces $24 million in new funds

The free online automation service is getting a fresh injection of capital, and plans on using the money to expand its platform and to "hire top talent."

Ry Crist Senior Editor / Reviews - Labs
Originally hailing from Troy, Ohio, Ry Crist is a writer, a text-based adventure connoisseur, a lover of terrible movies and an enthusiastic yet mediocre cook. A CNET editor since 2013, Ry's beats include smart home tech, lighting, appliances, broadband and home networking.
Expertise Smart home technology and wireless connectivity Credentials
  • 10 years product testing experience with the CNET Home team
Ry Crist
2 min read
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The online automation tool IFTTT announced a funding round worth $24 million today, and plans on using the money to hire new talent and expand its platform, the San Francisco-based company says. Now in its eighth year, IFTTT (short for "if this, then that") lets users connect over 600 web services and internet-connected gadgets using plug-and-play recipes called "applets."

The incoming capital comes from a group of investors that includes Salesforce Ventures and Fenox Venture Capital, as well as IBM Ventures and Chamberlain Group, two names tied to services with IFTTT channels of their own (IBM Watson Workspace and Chamberlain's family of smart garage openers, respectively). That Chamberlain MyQ channel is one of the only ones on IFTTT that charges its users a monthly fee -- a buck per month, to be specific.

"Every business is undergoing a dramatic transformation into a digital service," says Linden Tibbets, IFTTT's CEO. "We are on a mission to bring trust and compatibility to a future in which everything around us becomes a new app and another login."

Tibbets adds, "We could not be more excited to partner with our new investors, our passionate users, and every business working hard to become a service." 

Bret Greenstein, vice president of Watson and the Internet of Things at IBM, called his company's work with IFTTT "an important step to enable true interoperability between devices as IoT becomes pervasive across business and society alike."

The fresh cash joins previous investments from names including Andreessen Horowitz, and brings IFTTT's funding total up to $63 million.  

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