Jakob Freund Built A $200 Million Software Company Few Know

Jakob Freund co-founded Camunda in 2008. The Berlin-based company develops software for designing, automating and monitoring business processes. It is nearing $200 million in annual recurring revenue, although Freund says few people outside the technology industry know its name.

Audi uses Camunda to identify suppliers affected when low water levels threaten shipping routes. Goldman Sachs is another customer. “Most people have never heard of us,” Freund said. “We still have to fight for every single piece of attention, and for every deal.”

Freund became interested in software after reading a biography of Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates at age 12 in 1991. By then, he had already taught himself to program on his father’s computer in Berlin. He later studied business information systems, which combines computer science and business administration, at what is now HTW Berlin.

After working for two companies in business process management, Freund decided to start his own business. Around 2007, he contacted Bernd Rücker through the German business network Xing after finding his profile and asking him to write about Business Process Execution Language, a process standard. Rücker rejected the idea but suggested another topic. The two later became business partners.

Camunda began as a consultancy. In 2009, Freund and Rücker published a book about Business Process Model and Notation, a standard for representing business processes in diagrams that software can run. The book helped the company build a reputation among developers and process-management specialists.

For five years, Freund and Rücker ran Camunda as co-chief executives, making major decisions together. Freund eventually became the sole CEO, while Rücker took a technical and advocacy role. “When two people make decisions together, you always have to check in, you have to debate,” Freund said. “It takes longer to reach consensus, and people aren’t sure who to ask.”

In 2013, Camunda shifted from consultancy work to software development. The company built an open-source product based on Activiti, an existing project, and later added a commercial edition. It spent about 10 years rebuilding the technology before releasing Camunda 8 under a different license.

Freund said Camunda did not use a fully open-source license for Camunda 8 because large cloud providers could take the code, sell it and compete with the company. Some users continued working with the earlier Camunda 7 code. Camunda focused on attracting customers to the newer product.

Camunda operated without outside investment for its first decade. Highland Europe became its first investor in 2018, followed by Insight Partners in 2021. Freund said the company did not immediately need the money but raised it because investment terms were favorable and the funds could support a possible acquisition.

The acquisition did not happen. About a year ago, Camunda allowed employees to sell up to one-third of their vested virtual shares at a valuation of slightly more than €1 billion. The shares track the company’s value but do not represent actual stock. Freund said some employees used the proceeds to help buy their first homes.

Camunda became fully remote after the Covid-19 pandemic forced employees to work from home in 2020. The company now has more than 650 employees, including about 200 in the United States. Around five people may be in its Berlin office on a busy day.

Freund said the arrangement created disagreements over work, performance and time off between American and European employees. Camunda also raised its performance standards and cut roles four or five years ago. “My priority is not to make everybody happy,” he said. “My priority is to provide clarity, so people know what they are signing up for.”

Camunda uses artificial intelligence to analyze workplace data and help managers assess performance. Freund expects AI agents could begin assigning work and evaluating employees as early as 2027. He has questioned how much authority companies should give software.

The company is developing products for AI agents in business processes. Freund has described Camunda’s growth as a series of changes: from consultancy to software, office work to remote work, and an older process engine to a new one.