What ONTOFORCE does

ONTOFORCE N.V. is a Belgian software company founded in 2011 and headquartered in Ghent, with an additional office in Cambridge, Massachusetts, serving North American customers. The company develops DISQOVER, a knowledge discovery platform purpose-built for the life sciences industry. DISQOVER is built on ontology-based knowledge graph technology that integrates proprietary, licensed, and 80+ pre-ingested public biomedical and life sciences data sources into a unified, queryable semantic layer. The platform combines AI-based semantic search with natural language processing capabilities, including named entity recognition, PICOS annotation, and biomedical entity extraction, enabling researchers to query data in plain language rather than SQL.

The platform is modular, comprising DISQOVER Foundation (the core knowledge graph layer), DISQOVER Explore (visualization), DISQOVER API (enterprise integration), DISQOVER Export, Knowledge Feeds (curated public data streams), and an NLP add-on module. Use-case applications include Cohort Builder for clinical development, biomarker identification, and lab inventory management. Customers are predominantly large pharmaceutical enterprises — including AstraZeneca, Merck, UCB, Takeda, Boehringer Ingelheim, Johnson & Johnson, Grünenthal, and Almirall — alongside CROs, pediatric oncology research centers, and academic institutions.

ONTOFORCE operates an enterprise SaaS model with annual or multi-year subscription contracts sold through direct field sales with personalized demonstrations and quote-based pricing. The company has raised approximately €8.5–9M across three funding rounds (2013, 2016, and a 2018 Series A led by Korys), holds ISO 27001 certification, and is GDPR compliant — credentials that are particularly relevant to regulated pharma buyers. Beyond pharmaceuticals, the company has begun targeting adjacent verticals including agritech, cosmetics, animal health, and bio-based industries.

Name

ONTOFORCE

Legal name

ONTOFORCE N.V.

Website

https://ontoforce.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

ONTOFORCE builds DISQOVER, an ontology-based knowledge discovery platform that unifies proprietary, licensed, and public biomedical data into a semantic knowledge graph with NLP-powered natural language querying, serving pharmaceutical companies, CROs, and research institutions globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Life Sciences Knowledge Graph Platform

NAICS

Software Publishers (5132), Web Search Portals and All Other Information Services (51929), Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (5182)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Data Access, Sharing & Marketplace Platforms (incl. TEFCA/QHIN enablement) (HLACAIAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Enterprise AI Data & Knowledge Platforms (Vector Databases, Knowledge Graphs) (HDAEANAH), Data Sharing, Data Exchange & Data Marketplace Platforms (HDAEABAH), Data Lineage & Impact Analysis (HDAEADAF), Data Security & Access Governance for Data (Entitlements/Policy Enforcement) (HDAEADAH)

Keywords

• Knowledge graph platform
• Semantic search software
• Biomedical data integration
• Life sciences analytics
• Natural language processing

Headquarters

HQ city

Ghent

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. DISQOVER Platform Subscription: Enterprise software licensing model providing access to the DISQOVER knowledge discovery platform, including knowledge graph infrastructure, semantic search, NLP capabilities, and integrated data sources. Sold as annual or multi-year contracts to pharmaceutical and life sciences organizations.

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

ONTOFORCE sells DISQOVER, a life-sciences knowledge discovery platform that integrates proprietary, licensed, and public datasets into a single ontology-based knowledge graph. The platform uses AI-based semantic search, NLP, and an LLM-powered assistant to enable natural-language querying, cohort building, biomarker identification, and FAIR-compliant data exploration for pharmaceutical, biotech, CRO, and research customers.

Product overview

ONTOFORCE offers DISQOVER as a unified knowledge discovery platform built on knowledge graph and semantic search technology, designed specifically for life sciences organizations. The platform consists of core components (DISQOVER Foundation, Explore, API, Export, and Knowledge Feeds) plus specialized NLP capabilities (DISQOVER NLP module) and targeted use cases including Cohort Builder for clinical development, Biomarker Identification for translational research, and Inventory Management for lab operations. The platform integrates 80+ pre-ingested public data sources with proprietary and licensed data, enabling researchers to query in natural language without SQL expertise while supporting enterprise integration through APIs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• DISQOVER: ONTOFORCE's flagship knowledge discovery platform - a life sciences-specific semantic layer that unifies and enriches biomedical data into a living knowledge graph for AI-powered data exploration and analysis.

Products and services

• DISQOVER The life sciences knowledge discovery platform built on ontology-based knowledge graph technology. DISQOVER unifies siloed proprietary, licensed, and public datasets into a single queryable knowledge base with AI-powered semantic search and natural language processing for pharmaceutical, biotech, CRO, and research customers.
• DISQOVER Foundation Core foundation layer of the DISQOVER platform providing ontology-based knowledge graph infrastructure, data integration, and harmonization capabilities for building the semantic layer underlying customer deployments.
• DISQOVER Explore Interactive exploration and visualization component of DISQOVER that enables researchers to browse, visualize, and interact with data through configurable dashboards and charts.
• DISQOVER API Application programming interface for the DISQOVER platform enabling enterprise ecosystem integration, interoperability with downstream analytics tools, and powering AI/ML workflows by retrieving relevant data into internal analytics platforms.
• DISQOVER Export Data export functionality of DISQOVER that lets users securely export findings and cohort data to other analytical tools and external systems.
• Knowledge Feeds Curated and continuously updated data streams providing DISQOVER customers access to 80+ pre-ingested public biomedical data sources, refreshed and harmonized within the unified knowledge base.
• DISQOVER NLP Natural language processing and text mining module for DISQOVER that extracts insights from unstructured text — scientific literature, clinical trials, regulatory documents, and internal files — through named entity recognition, relation extraction, and pre-configured annotators such as PICOS, Biomedical Entities, and Regulatory.

Quantifiable outcome

• 99% reduction in time to find cohorts - tasks that took weeks now take under 5 minutes
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

AI capability6 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• ClarivatecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerClarivate partnered with ONTOFORCE to integrate DISQOVER with Clarivate Cortellis data. The collaboration enables DISQOVER users to access Cortellis proprietary data alongside public data sources, demonstrating how the knowledge platform works with major life sciences data providers to accelerate drug discovery and clinical research.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• SciBite (Elsevier): SciBite provides ontology-based semantic search and NLP for life sciences, directly comparable to DISQOVER's biomedical NER, named entity recognition, and knowledge graph capabilities. Both target pharma R&D use cases such as literature mining, biomarker discovery, and competitive intelligence.
• Linguamatics (IQVIA): Linguamatics offers an NLP-based text-mining platform for life sciences, now part of IQVIA. It is a direct competitor in biomedical NLP, semantic search, and knowledge extraction use cases (cohort building, literature analysis) for pharma and healthcare organizations.
• Causaly: Causaly is a biomedical knowledge graph and AI platform for drug discovery and target identification. It directly competes with DISQOVER's biomarker identification, target assessment, and translational research use cases for pharma and biotech R&D.
• Innoplexus: Innoplexus offers an AI-driven life sciences data platform with ontology-based knowledge graphs, comparable to DISQOVER in serving pharma and biotech with integrated public/proprietary biomedical data and analytics.

Broad incumbents

• Palantir Technologies: Palantir Foundry/AIP provides an enterprise ontology and data integration platform with AI assistants, increasingly used in pharma R&D and clinical operations. It is a broad incumbent offering overlapping capabilities to DISQOVER but at much larger scale and across multiple industries.
• IQVIA: IQVIA is the largest life-sciences data, analytics, and services company, encompassing Linguamatics and E360. It competes with ONTOFORCE across clinical, real-world, and commercial data integration, with broader offerings and scale.
• Elsevier (RELX Life Sciences): Elsevier owns SciBite and offers biomedical data, analytics, and knowledge graph solutions. It is a broad incumbent in life-sciences data and competes with ONTOFORCE in semantic search and data harmonization for pharma R&D.
• Databricks: Databricks' lakehouse and Unity Catalog plus Genie provide ontology-style data governance and natural-language querying on enterprise data. It is a broad incumbent increasingly targeted at life-sciences R&D data unification, with significantly greater scale and capital.

Emerging players

• Glean Technologies: Glean provides an AI-powered enterprise search and knowledge management platform with an assistant. While not life-sciences focused, it represents an emerging alternative model for unified knowledge graphs + LLM copilots that could be adapted to regulated industries.
• data.world: data.world is a data catalog and knowledge graph platform enabling semantic search and data governance. It is an emerging peer addressing similar enterprise data-discovery and ontology-backed governance problems, with potential overlap in life-sciences and other regulated verticals.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ontoforce
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC7I7qAZ-eS3JlS52dFoU5mQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/ontoforce
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ontoforce

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors4 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 ONTOFORCE