Slack

Slack Technologies develops workplace communication software that organizes team conversations into channels, direct messages, and file sharing capabilities. The company was founded in 2009 by Stewart Butterfield, Eric Costello, Cal Henderson, and Serguei Mourachov in San Francisco, California, initially as a gaming company called Tiny Speck before pivoting to workplace collaboration tools in 2013.

Slack's platform serves as a digital workspace where teams can communicate through organized channels, share files, and integrate with third-party applications including Google Drive, Zoom, and Salesforce. The service is used by organizations ranging from small startups to Fortune 100 companies including IBM, Target, and Airbnb. Slack competes with Microsoft Teams, Discord, and other workplace communication platforms.

Salesforce acquired Slack in July 2021 for $27.7 billion, making it one of the largest software acquisitions in history. Prior to the acquisition, Slack had raised approximately $1.4 billion in funding across multiple rounds and went public in 2019 through a direct listing on the New York Stock Exchange. The company employed approximately 2,500 people at the time of acquisition.