ToolJet Solutions Inc., the developer of a low-code platform for building business applications, today announced that it has secured $4.6 million in early-stage funding.

Nexus Venture Partners led the investment. The venture capital firm was joined by January Capital, Ratio Ventures and multiple angel investors. ToolJet previously closed a $1.55 million seed round in 2021. 

Many companies build custom internal applications to streamline their business operations. An online retailer, for example, might create an application that automatically prioritizes customer support requests by urgency to ease its help desk representatives’ work. Developing such custom software can take a significant amount of time and effort. 

ToolJet offers an open-source platform that promises to speed up the task. The platform, also called ToolJet, provides a low-code interface for developing internal applications. It includes pre-packaged interface components as well as a database that developers can use to store their applications’ information.

As part of its platform, ToolJet provides more than 35 software building blocks that vary in complexity. The platform offers simple interface elements such as website buttons. It also includes more advanced components such as data visualizations and maps, along with an embeddable code editor that developers can use to build programming tools. 

Applications created with ToolJet can store their information in a built-in database called ToolJet DB. It’s a simplified version of PostgreSQL, a popular open-source relational database. ToolJet DB enables users to add and remove records through a spreadsheet-like interface.

ToolJet-powered applications can also draw on data stored in external systems. The startup offers several dozen integrations for databases such as MySQL and MongoDB, as well as popular cloud services.

Developers can load data from external sources into an ToolJet application by writing queries in the JavaScript or Python languages. Both languages provide a relatively simple syntax, which speeds up software development. Queries can optionally also be used to modify data after retrieving it, for example by filtering duplicate records.

ToolJet generates revenue by selling a commercial version of the platform that offers additional features. It adds controls for regulating user access to its environments, as well as other security capabilities. The startup’s commercial platform is available as a managed cloud service and and as a standalone application that can be installed on-premises.

“Low-code development is an evolution of frameworks that are used for building web applications,” founder and Chief Executive Officer Navaneeth Padanna Kalathil wrote in a blog post. “Open-source again is going to be a key driver in this evolution.”

According to ToolJet, its platform has been adopted by hundreds of software teams since the open-source version was released in 2021. To support the continued growth of its user base, it plans to speed up feature development initiatives. The company will expand its engineering, product and developer relations teams as part of the effort. 

Image: ToolJet