What Project B does

Project B GmbH (operating as project b.) is a Munich-based AI-powered payroll SaaS company founded in 2023 to serve the German market. The company's core product is a SaaS platform that automates payroll data intake, validation, and structuring, anchored by RITA, a proprietary AI assistant that reads emails, PDFs, Excel files, scans, and photos to extract payroll-relevant information and present suggestions for human approval. The platform exposes native, field-level integrations with the dominant German payroll engines (DATEV Lohn & Gehalt, DATEV LODAS, Agenda Lohn + HR, Wolters Kluwer SBS Lohn) plus adjacent finance tools (Pennylane, Mika), allowing it to sit in front of incumbent systems rather than displace them. Additional modules cover digital employee files (Personalakte), absence management with per-Bundesland public holiday logic, a login-free service portal for Sofortmeldung submissions, and a forthcoming Time Tracking module scheduled for June 2026.

The company operates a dual go-to-market motion. For payroll bureaus (Lohnbüros) and tax advisory firms (Steuerberater), a sales-led funnel drives Calendly-based demos with domain experts; for companies with in-house HR and payroll teams, a self-serve platform is available alongside a full-service payroll outsourcing offering in which Project B's team runs the monthly payroll cycle end-to-end. Pricing is per active employee on a monthly subscription with no setup fees, and the outsourcing service is structured as recurring revenue. The 15-person Munich team carries 100+ years of combined payroll experience and traces its lineage to ITSG-certified payroll software shipped by the founders in 2019. Security and compliance posture includes ISO 27001:2022 certification with annual external audits, GDPR compliance with EU data residency (Frankfurt primary, Dublin failover), and Art. 28 DSGVO data processing agreements.

Name

Project B

Legal name

Project B GmbH

Website

https://project-b.dev

Company type

Private

Founded year

2023

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Project B GmbH is a Munich-based AI-powered payroll SaaS platform serving German payroll bureaus, tax advisors, and in-house HR teams with automated data intake, native DATEV/Agenda/SBS integration, and a full payroll outsourcing service.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Payroll Software

NAICS

Payroll Services (541214), Software Publishers (513210), Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services (54121), Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (5182)

SIC

Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370), Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Services-Computer Processing & Data Preparation (7374)

akta.pro primary industry

Payroll Software & Payroll-as-a-Service (SaaS) (BPACAIAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Managed Payroll Services (Full-Service Payroll Outsourcing) (BPAAAHAA), Human Capital Management (HCM) & Payroll Platforms (HDAEAEAJ), Payroll Outsourcing & Pay Administration (Multi-country/Managed Payroll) (BPACAKAD)

Keywords

• Payroll software
• Payroll automation
• AI payroll processing
• Payroll outsourcing
• Employee data management

Headquarters

HQ city

Munich

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Full Payroll Outsourcing Service: Complete monthly payroll processing handled by project b.'s team for companies. Clients deliver data through the platform, and the team handles the full payroll cycle including authority communications.
2. SaaS Platform Subscription: Platform subscription for payroll bureaus and tax advisors to manage multiple client accounts (Mandante). Pricing based on per active employee across client portfolio.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Project B GmbH sells an AI-powered SaaS payroll platform and full payroll outsourcing services for the German market. The platform uses the RITA AI assistant to extract and validate payroll data from emails, PDFs, scans, and Excel files, then exports structured data into DATEV, Agenda, Wolters Kluwer SBS Lohn, and other German payroll engines. The company also operates as a payroll bureau, providing complete monthly payroll runs for in-house HR teams.

Product overview

project b. is a German payroll software company offering both a SaaS platform and full payroll outsourcing services. The core product is an AI-powered payroll platform with an intelligent intake layer (RITA) that sits in front of existing German payroll engines (DATEV, Agenda, SBS Lohn). The platform includes modules for digital employee files, absence management, time tracking, and a login-free service portal. For companies, project b. also offers full payroll outsourcing where their team handles the entire monthly payroll run. The architecture is designed as a modular system where clients can use individual modules or the complete platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Payroll Platform

Quantifiable outcome

• 70% less time on pre-entry
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

AI capability6 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• DATEVcoreTechnology or IntegrationNative integration with DATEV Lohn & Gehalt and DATEV LODAS. Direct ASCII/LUG export, master data sync, and document filing into DATEV DMS. Field-level mapping and pre-export validation.
• Agenda (Wolters Kluwer)coreTechnology or IntegrationNative integration with Agenda Lohn + HR. CSV import templates, field-level mapping, and clean handoff for monthly closes.
• Wolters Kluwer SBS LohncoreTechnology or IntegrationStructured CSV exchange, pre-mapped fields, and batch processing for SBS Lohn payroll system.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Personio: German-founded HR and payroll SaaS platform serving SMB and mid-market employers across Europe. Directly comparable as a vertically-focused, AI-augmented HR/payroll platform targeting German-speaking customers with similar regulatory complexity.
• Kenjo: Berlin-based HR and people operations platform serving SMBs in Germany and Spain with payroll-adjacent capabilities. Comparable as a German-rooted HR SaaS competing for the same Mittelstand buyer with a similar mid-market GTM motion.

Broad incumbents

• DATEV eG: Cooperative-owned dominant German tax, payroll, and accounting software provider with 2.6M+ member firms. Directly comparable as the incumbent payroll engine Project B integrates with — and a potential competitor if it ships its own AI intake layer.
• Agenda (Wolters Kluwer): Established German Lohn + HR payroll software from Wolters Kluwer, integrated by Project B. Directly comparable as one of the core incumbent engines serving the same German payroll market.
• Wolters Kluwer SBS Lohn: Legacy German payroll software integrated by Project B for structured CSV exchange. Comparable as an established payroll engine whose installed base and brand trust define the competitive context for AI-native challengers.
• Haufe HR: Haufe Group's HR and payroll software portfolio serving German mid-market and enterprise. Comparable as a broad incumbent providing overlapping payroll, HR, and compliance functionality to the same buyer segments.
• Sage HR: Global HR and payroll SaaS provider with presence in Germany. Comparable as a broad incumbent offering HR/payroll workflows to SMB and mid-market customers across multiple geographies.

Regional players

• PayFit: European payroll and HR SaaS platform headquartered in France, primarily serving France, Spain, and other European markets. Comparable as a regional payroll SaaS peer expanding across Europe with similar SMB/mid-market positioning, though not yet active in Germany.

Emerging players

• Deel: Global payroll, EOR, and contractor management platform expanding aggressively into Germany and EU-wide employer-of-record services. Comparable as an emerging player using AI to automate cross-border payroll, with overlapping German employer-target customers.
• Pento: European payroll automation SaaS focused on SMB and mid-market employers. Comparable as an emerging AI-enabled payroll challenger targeting similar buyer personas and competing for the same type of payroll automation spend.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors9 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Project B