Selector automatically spots IT issues and recommends fixes

AIOps, short for “artificial intelligence in operations,” is a process that uses AI to automate IT tasks. More organizations are embracing it as AI commodifies, yet adoption is still lagging. According to a recent IDC survey, almost half of companies said that they were just getting started in AIOps, while a third indicated they had an AIOps roadmap but “had a lot more work to do.”

Longtime Juniper Networks execs Kannan Kothandaraman and Nitin Kumar thought they might know how to spread AIOps far and wide. In 2019, they founded Selector, which uses data and AI to attempt to identify IT problems and ways to fix them.

“We came up with the initial idea for Selector after working with a major hyperscaler and getting a view into how they were using data to better optimize their network operations,” Kothandaraman told TechCrunch. “They were able to put machine learning and AI to work throughout their network, using their data to increase efficiency.”

So Kothandaraman and Kumar started chatting with similar companies in the space. A lot were looking for help to achieve what the hyperscaler did — that is, building AI into their operations. After assembling a team, Kothandaraman and Kumar launched Selector. The company’s platform monitors corporate infrastructure, prescribing actions after an IT incident occurs.

Via an AI-powered chat interface, users can ask questions about problems — for example, “Where did this outage occur?” — and Selector will respond in natural language.

“The main thing we’re doing is simplifying,” Kothandaraman said. “There’s an explosion of complexity and data that teams are struggling to deal with in enterprises. We’re providing the insights that these teams need to do their work.” 

Now Selector has competition — and a fair amount of it. There’s Keep and Senser, which aim to help operations teams reduce alert fatigue. BigPanda is one of the larger AIOps players, having raised hundreds of millions of dollars in venture capital. And incumbents like New Relic and ServiceNow offer their own AIOps solutions.

Fortunately for Selector, the AIOps market is growing at a rapid clip. By one estimate, the sector will generate $213.66 billion by 2033, up from $25.24 billion in 2023.

Selector, which has around 40 customers, including AT&T, Bell Canada, and Singtel, this month closed a $33 million Series B round led by Ansa. Kothandaraman wouldn’t share Selector’s valuation, but he said that it’s increased 4x since October 2021.

“In the last two years, we’ve been deployed by some of the largest telecommunications and enterprise companies in the world,” he said. “Now we’re seeing increased demand from others. It’s the time to invest in expanding our footprint and awareness.”

Bringing Selector’s total raised to $66 million, the Series B proceeds will be put toward expanding the company’s footprint with new offices and staff across the U.S., Canada, Europe, Singapore, India, and Japan, Kothandaraman said. Selector plans to grow its workforce from 115 people to 150 next year.

Two Bear Capital, Atlantic Bridge, SineWave Ventures, and the aforementioned client AT&T, Bell Canada, and Singtel also participated in Selector’s Series B.