Pia, the Australian-based startup that entered the U.S. market in July with an AI-based automation-as-a-service platform for the help desk, is on the move, according to Tim Coach (pictured), global channel chief. That includes not only building out Pia aiDesk but expanding into additional markets.
Today, Pia aiDesk automates triage and Level 1 and Level 2 functionality, analyzing, routing, and taking action on repetitive tasks such as user creation, password or virtual private network resets, domain name system flushing, active administration changes, and more. Developed by MSP Virtual IT Group (VITG) for internal use and spun out as a separate company, it integrates with ticketing systems from ConnectWise, Kaseya, HaloPSA, Datto, and ServiceNow.
Boosting MSP profitability is the goal. “One of the things that eats away at our profits the most as an MSP is labor cost, hands down,” Coach says. “No matter what you do across the board, if a ticket takes 15 minutes or 30 minutes or two hours, that’s a direct cost against that contract. So, the more that we can reduce the labor cost on a ticket, the more profitable we can make the MSP.”
Pia is continuing to build out Tier 1 and 2 ticket functionalities, Coach continues, and will be adding Tier 3 next year. As of November, Pia had about 60 clients running its agents on around 250,000 endpoints and had “another hundred thousand endpoints in the pipe that [are] actively signed and actively moving into the solution,” he adds.
Coach says Pia is actively moving into the U.K. and EU markets, has closed deals in India and South Africa, and is working to roll out support for different languages and monetary systems for 2023.
To support that goal, Pia has grown its development staff to over 50. “Part of that is creating all these different nuances that each country needs to use the product, because you truly can’t be a … global company if you’re not using their currency, if you’re not using their languages,” Coach says. In addition, he notes, Pia is looking to form strategic partnerships in each market and expects to announce a strategic partnership on the development side of the house early next year.
Security is also a big push for Pia. “We fully expect by the end of this year to have our ISO certification,” Coach says. “We fully expect to have our SOC certification. We’re looking at GDPR coming right after the first of the year.”
As Pia scales, there are no plans to raise capital. “We’re not seeking VC money. We’re not seeking any outside funds,” Coach stresses. “The product was created by a nine-figure MSP. They have 175 employees on staff. We are 100% privately funded. We don’t need VC money.”
He adds, “The solution is resounding so well that the global market is taking notice and is now seeking us out. That’s cool.”
