Tiago Paiva

Founder and CEO, Talkdesk
,United States
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Who Is Tiago Paiva?

Total Experience14 years
CompanyTalkdesk
CountryUnited States

Tiago Paiva is the co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Talkdesk, a leading cloud-based contact center and artificial intelligence software provider. An engineer by trade and an entrepreneur at heart, Tiago founded Talkdesk in 2011 in Portugal after recognizing a gap in the market for flexible and user-friendly contact center solutions. He famously built the initial prototype in just 10 days to win a hackathon, which provided the seed capital for the company. Under his leadership, Tiago relocated the company to Silicon Valley and scaled it from a small startup into a multi-billion dollar 'unicorn', fundamentally changing the customer experience (CX) industry. He is recognized for his visionary leadership, relentless focus on product innovation, and his role in establishing a new standard for enterprise communication.

How Did Tiago Paiva's Career Path Shape Their Journey?

Tiago Paiva's work history includes a series of influential roles in various companies. Here is a detailed list of his professional journey:

Talkdesk - Founder and CEO(2011 to Present)
Procter & Gamble - Developer(2009 to 2010)

What Are Tiago Paiva's Key Achievements?

TwilioFund Hackathon Winner

In 2011, Tiago Paiva won a hackathon sponsored by Twilio, securing the initial funding and validation to launch Talkdesk. This event was the catalyst that transformed a prototype into a viable company.

Building a Tech Unicorn

He successfully led Talkdesk from a startup to a major enterprise software company, achieving a valuation of over $1 billion in 2018 and later reaching a $10 billion valuation, cementing its status as a leader in the SaaS industry.

Forbes Cloud 100 Recognition

Under his guidance, Talkdesk has been consistently named to the Forbes Cloud 100 list, an annual ranking of the world's top private cloud companies, highlighting its market leadership and rapid growth.

EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Finalist

Recognized as a finalist for the prestigious EY Entrepreneur Of The Year award in Northern California, acknowledging his exceptional innovation, financial performance, and personal commitment to his business and community.

What's Tiago Paiva's Educational Background?

MSc, Network and Telecommunications

Instituto Superior Técnico - Year 2008

MSc, Computer Science

KTH Royal Institute of Technology - Year 2009

BSc, Network and Telecommunications

Instituto Superior Técnico - Year 2005

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Hiring actively
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Company Overview

Talkdesk
Total employees1800
HeadquartersSan Francisco
Founded2011

Talkdesk is a global cloud contact center leader for customer-obsessed companies. Its AI-powered platform, Talkdesk CX Cloud, offers a modern, end-to-end customer experience solution that helps businesses improve customer satisfaction and agent productivity while reducing operational costs. By combining enterprise-grade performance with consumer-like simplicity, Talkdesk enables companies to adapt their contact centers to the evolving needs of their customers and teams, resulting in improved customer loyalty and business outcomes.

Talkdesk Funding Information
Unknown - Total Funding Raised
$230M - Most recent funding amount
6 - Number of funding rounds
Aug 12, 2021 - Latest funding round
Lead Investors:
Viking Global Investors
TI Platform Management
Silver Lake Waterman
Franklin Templeton
Top Tier Capital Partners
Threshold
Salesforce Ventures
Storm Ventures

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