Lighthouse, a company building AI-powered software for hotels, has raised a $370m Series C round, led by KKR. The raise mints the UK-HQ’d startup as a unicorn.
Existing investors Spectrum Equity, F-Prime Capital, Eight Roads Ventures and Highgate Technology Ventures also participated in the round.
The fresh capital will be spent on acquisitions, global expansion and product development, the company said in a statement. It takes the startup’s total funding to $470m.
Lighthouse — formerly known as OTA Insight — provides booking management software, including AI-driven pricing, alongside a business intelligence platform, for independent hotels, large hotel groups and B&B owners.
The company says more than 70k hospitality providers have used its platform since launching in 2012. It has more than 700 employees worldwide.
Lighthouse previously raised in an $80m Series B in November 2021. It’s acquired four companies since then — on top of another in 2020 — including two in 2024. It snapped up Belgium hotel software startup Stardekk in February and German accommodation pricing software HQ Revenue in June.
B2B SaaS funding uptick
The raise comes following signs of a resurgence in B2B SaaS funding in Europe this year.
Following a record $18.7bn raised by the sector in 2022, according to Dealroom, funding dropped to $7.5bn in 2023. While funding fell across European tech between those two years, B2B SaaS fell further.
But so far in 2024 the sector has already topped last year’s funding figures, picking up $8.9bn.
Lighthouse becomes Europe’s twelfth unicorn in 2024, following on from UK-based period tracking app Flo’s minting in July, German gym software provider Egym in September and French AI startup Poolside in October.
