Plain
Plain is a London-based, API-first AI customer support platform founded in 2020 that unifies Slack, Microsoft Teams, Discord, email, chat, and in-app channels into one workspace for engineering-led B2B SaaS teams, with native MCP server integration, BYOA agent orchestration, and tiered subscription plus usage-based AI pricing.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2020
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Plain does
Plain (legally Not Just Tickets Ltd) is a London-based software company founded in 2020 that builds an API-first, AI-native customer support platform targeted at engineering-led B2B SaaS teams. The core product unifies customer conversations across Slack, Microsoft Teams, Discord, email, live chat, in-app forms, and help center into a single workspace, eliminating the fragmentation that technical support organizations typically manage through stitched-together point tools.
The platform is architected around a public GraphQL API with full UI-API parity and no restrictive rate limits, a native Model Context Protocol (MCP) server with approximately 30 tools for AI agent integration, and an AI stack comprising Ari (a customer-facing triage and resolution agent operating at ~92% accuracy grounded on customer knowledge bases), Sidekick (an internal copilot that drafts responses without auto-sending), and a Bring Your Own Agent (BYOA) layer via Machine Users and webhooks. Supporting modules include a visual workflow automation builder, an Insights analytics layer for trend and churn-risk detection, customizable Customer Cards that surface account context inside threads, and migration importers for Zendesk, Intercom, Front, Freshdesk, and Help Scout.
Plain monetizes through a tiered subscription model—Foundation at $35/month, Horizon at $299/month, and a custom-priced Frontier enterprise tier—layered with usage-based AI credit consumption and a startup program offering up to 50% discounts to eligible early-stage companies. Distribution is hybrid: self-serve product-led growth with a 7-day free trial, plus direct enterprise sales for Horizon and Frontier deals. The company has raised approximately $21 million across a 2022 seed led by Index Ventures and Connect Ventures and a February 2025 Series A led by Battery Ventures, operates with 11-50 employees, and serves hundreds of customer teams including Vercel, Cursor, Sourcegraph, Sanity, Clerk, Buildkite, Fly.io, Tinybird, n8n, Resend, Stytch, and Raycast.
Plain firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Plain
- Legal name
- Not Just Tickets Ltd
- Website
- https://plain.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2020
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Plain is a London-based, API-first AI customer support platform founded in 2020 that unifies Slack, Microsoft Teams, Discord, email, chat, and in-app channels into one workspace for engineering-led B2B SaaS teams, with native MCP server integration, BYOA agent orchestration, and tiered subscription plus usage-based AI pricing.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Plain industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Customer Support Software
- NAICS
- Software Publishers (5132), Software Publishers (513210)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- AI Application Enablement Platforms (Copilot/Agent Frameworks, SDKs) (HDAEANAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- AI Integration & Orchestration Platforms (Connectors, Workflow, iPaaS for AI) (HDAEANAI), Conversational AI Platforms (chat/voice bots, orchestration) (HDAAAFAC), AI & Automation in Customer Service (Chatbots, Agent Assist) (EDABACAO)
Keywords
Where Plain is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Plain business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Subscription Plans: Tiered subscription model with Foundation ($35/month), Horizon ($299/month), and custom Frontier plans. Includes seat-based pricing and monthly credit allowances for AI features. Annual billing offers 10% savings. Revenue is primarily subscription-based with land-and-expand dynamics as teams grow from Foundation to Horizon to Frontier.
- AI Credits (Usage-based): Additional credit purchases for AI features (Sidekick, Ari) beyond plan allowances. Foundation includes 2,000 credits/month, Horizon includes 15,000 credits/month. Purchased add-on credits roll over month to month. Adds usage-based consumption layer on top of base subscription.
- Startup Program: Early-stage startups may be eligible for up to 50% discount on plans. Revenue optimization through startup tier targeting technical companies early in their growth journey.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Foundation: $35/month - Early-stage companies with <10 people |
| Subscription | Monthly | Horizon: $299/month - Companies with dedicated Support/Success function |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Frontier: Custom pricing - Large support organizations or enterprise teams |
| Subscription | Annual | Annual Billing: 10% discount on all plans |
| Subscription | Monthly | Startup Discount: Up to 50% off eligible early-stage startups |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
Plain product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Plain sells an API-first, AI-powered customer support platform that unifies support conversations from Slack, Microsoft Teams, Discord, email, live chat, and in-app forms into a single queue for B2B SaaS teams. It bundles AI agents (Ari for customers, Sidekick for support teams), a Bring Your Own Agent (BYOA) framework with a native MCP server, visual workflow automation, and a public GraphQL API with full UI-API parity, sold via tiered subscriptions (Foundation, Horizon, Frontier).
Product overview
Plain is an API-first AI support infrastructure platform for B2B SaaS teams, offering a unified platform with multiple integrated modules. The core platform consolidates support across Slack, Microsoft Teams, Discord, email, live chat, and in-app forms into a single queue. Key AI modules include: Ari (customer-facing AI agent for auto-triage and resolution), Sidekick (internal AI copilot for drafting responses), and Agents (BYOA architecture for connecting custom AI agents via MCP server). Supporting capabilities include: Workflows (visual automation builder), Insights (analytics and trend detection), Help Center (AI-powered knowledge base), Chat Widget (embeddable live chat), Customer Cards (customizable customer context display), and GraphQL API with MCP server for full programmability. Pricing tiers include Foundation ($35/month), Horizon ($299/month), and Frontier (custom), with a Startup Program offering up to 50% discount for eligible early-stage companies.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Plain Core Platform AI-first customer support infrastructure platform for B2B SaaS teams that consolidates Slack, Microsoft Teams, Discord, email, live chat, in-app forms, and help center into a single queue with full GraphQL API programmability.
- Ari (Customer-facing AI Agent)
Quantifiable outcome
- n8n AI handles 60% of tickets automatically, with goal of 80% by end of 2026
- +7 more outcomes
Companies that use Plain
Customer profileNamed customers20 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Plain technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration16 records
AI capability11 records
Feature8 records
Plain partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators11 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Plain competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Zendesk: Zendesk is the incumbent customer support platform serving B2B and B2C teams with ticketing, AI agents, and a broad integration ecosystem. Direct competitor to Plain's unified workspace; Plain explicitly offers Zendesk migration tooling.
- Tidio: Tidio is an AI customer service platform combining live chat, help desk, and Lyro AI agent, primarily targeting SMB and ecommerce. Comparable to Plain's Ari agent and chat widget but with less depth on engineering-led/developer use cases.
- Freshdesk: Freshdesk is Freshworks' customer support product offering ticketing, automation, and Freddy AI agent across SMB and enterprise. Competes with Plain on multi-channel support and AI automation; Plain offers Freshdesk migration tooling.
- Help Scout: Help Scout is a customer support platform for SMB and mid-market B2B companies with shared inbox, help center, and AI features. Competes with Plain on multi-channel support and PLG-style self-serve onboarding; Plain offers Help Scout migration tooling.
- Front: Front is a multi-channel customer operations platform that consolidates email, SMS, WhatsApp, and chat into shared inboxes. Comparable to Plain on multi-channel unification and API extensibility; targets similar B2B SaaS and mid-market customers.
- Ada: Ada is an AI-native customer service automation platform with AI agents, voice, and chat for enterprise support. Comparable to Plain on agentic AI support infrastructure and enterprise motion; differs on go-to-market depth into engineering buyers.
- Intercom: Intercom is a B2B SaaS customer support and engagement platform with Fin AI agent and a product-led growth motion. Most direct competitor to Plain in targeting technical B2B SaaS buyers with AI-first support; Plain offers Intercom migration tooling.
Emerging players
- Forethought: Forethought is an AI customer support platform offering Triage, Assist, and Solve agents integrated with Zendesk, Salesforce, and help desks. Comparable to Plain's Sidekick and Ari agents; focused on AI augmentation rather than full-stack support infrastructure.
Broad incumbents
- HubSpot Service Hub: HubSpot Service Hub is the customer service module of the HubSpot CRM platform, offering ticketing, knowledge base, and Breeze AI. Comparable to Plain on help desk functionality but bundles with HubSpot's broader marketing/sales CRM rather than targeting engineering-led support use cases.
- Kustomer: Kustomer (now part of Meta/Facebook) is an enterprise CRM and customer service platform with omnichannel messaging, automation, and AI. Comparable to Plain on multi-channel unification but focused on enterprise and broader CX rather than engineering-led B2B SaaS.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Plain social profiles
Digital presencePlain compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Plain financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Plain leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Plain funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors5 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Plain M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Plain
What does Plain do?
Plain sells an API-first, AI-powered customer support platform that unifies support conversations from Slack, Microsoft Teams, Discord, email, live chat, and in-app forms into a single queue for B2B SaaS teams. It bundles AI agents (Ari for customers, Sidekick for support teams), a Bring Your Own Agent (BYOA) framework with a native MCP server, visual workflow automation, and a public GraphQL API with full UI-API parity, sold via tiered subscriptions (Foundation, Horizon, Frontier).
Is Plain a public or private company?
Plain is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Plain founded?
Plain was founded in 2020. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Plain based?
Plain is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Plain make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Subscription Plans are the primary driver. The others are AI Credits (Usage-based) and startup Program.
Who are Plain's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Zendesk, Tidio, Freshdesk, Help Scout, Front, Ada and Intercom. Forethought is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are HubSpot Service Hub and Kustomer.
Does Plain have an API?
Yes. Plain offers a public GraphQL API with full UI-API parity. The API URL is https://core-api.uk.plain.com/graphql/v1 and uses POST method with Bearer token authentication. The API supports the same capabilities as the UI product, allowing developers to build anything programmatically including managing customers, companies, tenants, tiers, events, labels, messaging, snippets, tasks, notes, webhook targets, discussions, help center content, and attachments. Plain also offers an MCP server with 30+ tools for AI agent integration, and provides a typed TypeScript SDK for the GraphQL API. Developer documentation is at www.plain.com/docs/graphql/introduction.
What industry is Plain in?
Plain's product category is Customer Support Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAEANAJ, AI Application Enablement Platforms (Copilot/Agent Frameworks, SDKs), with a secondary code of HDAEANAI, AI Integration & Orchestration Platforms (Connectors, Workflow, iPaaS for AI). Its NAICS code is 5132 and its SIC code is 7372.