Copenhagen-based startup Leapwork ApS today disclosed that it has received $62 million from investors through a funding round described as the largest Series B investment ever raised in Denmark.

KKR & Co. Inc. and Salesforce.com Inc.’s venture capital arm jointly led the investment.

Leapwork provides a software platform that enterprises use to find and fix technical issues in their applications. A delivery company, for example, could harness the platform to find malfunctioning features in its web-based package tracking application. Banks can harness Leapwork’s software to identify bugs in their mobile apps that could negatively impact the customer experience if left unfixed. 

Leapwork detects technical issues by simulating how users interact with an application. The platform can type a parcel number into a package tracking service to check if the correct package details will be returned, or submit a form via a bank’s mobile app to determine whether the process is carried out smoothly. Leapwork can perform a large number of tests in parallel to quickly go through all the scenarios where users might encounter software issues.

There are multiple other tools on the market focused on automating application tests. According to Leapwork, it has set its platform apart by prioritizing usability and reducing the amount of work involved in checking an application for technical issues.

Historically, companies would test their applications by writing custom scripts that mimicked user browsing sessions. Such scripts require coding expertise to create and can take days to deploy in some cases. Leapwork, in contrast, makes it possible to perform tests without writing any code and says that users can start evaluating applications within minutes of installing its platform rather than days.

Leapwork users create tests by assembling a flowchart from click and point building blocks. Each block represents an action, such as a form submission, that Leapwork will perform in an application as part of the test. Workers can customize each action, and combine multiple actions together, to replicate how users interact with the application. 

The company says its no-code approach offers several advantages over legacy methods. The first is that it allows business users rather than developers to create tests. If a company is looking to find potential issues in its supply chain management system, it could have members of the supply chain team create the necessary tests. In some cases, business users’ familiarity with the application being evaluated enables them to create more thorough testing workflows than developers who don’t use the application on a day-to-day basis.

A second benefit Leapwork promises is faster time to market for software projects. Before developers roll out an application to production, they must extensively check every component for errors to ensure their code will function as intended. Leapwork says that its platform’s ability to carry out testing automatically can speed up software projects and enable development teams to release their applications faster.

The startup is promising similar time savings for update tests. Companies have to evaluate an application for errors not only at the time of its initial release but also after every update, since even the most localized code change can potentially introduce bugs into the software. Automating tests makes it possible to save time and facilitate faster releases. 

Speeding up updates has become a particularly big priority in recent years with companies’ adoption of the so-called continuous integration and continuous delivery or CI/CD approach to development. With CI/CD, software developers roll out enhancements to their application as often as multiple times a day. There’s no time to spend hours manually testing each update, which creates a need for automation tools that can streamline the task. 

Leapwork says its platform is deployed at major brands such as PayPal Holdings Inc. and Mercedes Benz. The startup will use its new funding to add yet more companies to its customer base, particularly in North America. Leapwork said that it will “significantly” grow the team at its recently opened New York office to support the effort. 

“The U.S. is arguably the most important market for software automation in the world, and we’ve already experienced strong success there, with around half of our customer base coming out of North America,” said Leapwork co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Christian Brink Frederiksen. “Both KKR and Salesforce Ventures understand the market and can be true strategic partners as we continue to grow our global presence.”

Leapwork has raised more than $71 million in funding to date. The startup is valued at $312 million. 

Image: Leapwork