Seek AI
by Seek AI (acquired by IBM)
Natural-language-to-SQL analytics platform (acquired by IBM in 2025)
Last reviewed 2026-06-19
Seek AI was an enterprise generative-AI platform that let business users ask ad-hoc questions about their data in plain English and got answers back by automatically generating and running the underlying SQL. It connected to cloud data warehouses and communication tools so non-technical users could self-serve analytics, and it tuned to a company's own schema and business terminology for more accurate domain answers. IBM acquired Seek AI in June 2025 to anchor its new watsonx AI Labs in New York and strengthen its agentic enterprise-data capabilities. Seek AI is therefore no longer sold as an independent product; its team and technology have been folded into IBM. This entry is retained as deprecated for historical reference.
What it can do
Answer ad-hoc data questions in natural language
CopilotUsers ask plain-English questions and Seek generates and runs the query to return an answer.
sourceGenerate SQL automatically
CopilotWrites query code against the connected warehouse to satisfy each question, for an analyst to validate.
sourceConnect to the existing data and comms stack
AssistantIntegrates with cloud data warehouses and communication tools so answers surface where users already work.
sourceLearn domain-specific context
CopilotTailors responses to a company's schema and business terminology for more accurate domain answers.
source
Strengths
- +Lowered the barrier to data access for non-technical users via natural language
- +Domain-specific tuning aimed at accuracy on a company's own schema and terminology
- +Strong validation: notable investors and ultimately an IBM acquisition
Limitations
- −No longer an independent product; capabilities are being absorbed into IBM watsonx
- −Limited public transparency on models, exact connectors, and accuracy benchmarks
- −Natural-language-to-SQL accuracy on complex questions still needs human verification
Overview
Seek AI was a New York enterprise generative-AI platform for natural-language analytics. Founded in 2021 by Sarah Nagy, it let business users ask questions in plain English and answered them by automatically generating and running SQL against the company's data warehouse.
What it did
Users asked ad-hoc questions; Seek wrote the query, ran it, and returned the answer, surfacing results inside existing communication tools. It tuned to a company's schema and business terminology to improve accuracy on domain-specific questions. As a self-serve assistant, generated queries and results were meant to be reviewed by analysts, not trusted blindly, so we classify it as a copilot.
Status
IBM acquired Seek AI in June 2025 to power its watsonx AI Labs in New York. Seek AI is no longer an independent product; this entry is marked deprecated for historical reference.
Traction
Seek AI raised roughly $10.5M total before the acquisition, including a ~$7.5M round co-led by Conviction and Battery Ventures, with angels including dbt Labs' Tristan Handy, DeepMind's Mustafa Suleyman, and former Snowflake CEO Bob Muglia. Acquisition terms were undisclosed.
Best for / not for
No longer a standalone buying option. Teams wanting natural-language analytics today should look at Julius AI, ThoughtSpot, Hex, or Hebbia, or evaluate IBM watsonx directly.
Alternatives
Julius AI and ThoughtSpot cover natural-language analytics; Hex is a data-team notebook with AI; Hebbia targets document and data Q&A for enterprises.
What people are saying
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FAQ
Can I still buy Seek AI?+
Not as a standalone product. IBM acquired Seek AI in June 2025 and folded the team and technology into its watsonx AI Labs in New York. Its capabilities are being delivered through IBM rather than sold separately.
What did Seek AI do?+
It let business users ask plain-English questions about their data and answered them by generating and running SQL against the company's data warehouse, tuned to that company's schema and terminology.
Sources
- Seek lands $7.5M for AI that answers domain-specific questions (TechCrunch) · accessed 2026-06-19
- IBM acquires data analysis startup Seek AI, opens AI accelerator in NYC (TechCrunch) · accessed 2026-06-19
- IBM acquires Seek AI to power watsonx AI Labs (The Register) · accessed 2026-06-19
Last reviewed 2026-06-19