Swirlds
Swirlds, Inc. is a Dallas-based software company that developed the Hashgraph consensus algorithm — a formally verified, asynchronous Byzantine Fault Tolerant protocol enabling server-less distributed applications. The company now operates primarily as an open-source IP and brand holder, redirecting developers to the affiliated Hedera platform.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersDallas, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Swirlds does
Swirlds, Inc. is a Dallas, Texas-based private software company that developed the Hashgraph consensus algorithm, a distributed consensus mechanism providing asynchronous Byzantine Fault Tolerance (aBFT) with formal verification in the Coq proof assistant. The technology enables "Shared Worlds" — fully distributed applications that operate without traditional servers, using a gossip-about-gossip protocol and virtual voting to achieve fast, fair ordering of transactions without leaders, round-robin scheduling, or proof-of-work.
The company's product portfolio centers on the Hashgraph algorithm itself, a suite of technical whitepapers and formal documentation, and the open-source components released under Apache 2.0 in 2022. The core innovation was invented by co-founder Dr. Leemon Baird, whose related work underpins the Hedera public ledger — a separate platform whose ongoing development has been moved to the affiliated Swirlds Labs entity. The Swirlds, Inc. website now functions primarily as an informational and brand-holding presence that redirects developers to Hedera's getting-started portal for application development resources.
The business model is opaque: pricing is not publicly disclosed, no customer logos are available, and the primary asset (Hashgraph) has been open-sourced. The company has 1-10 employees and has raised a confirmed $3.0 million from New Enterprise Associates in September 2017, plus an earlier FirstMile Ventures investment in June 2016. Go-to-market appears to be indirect, leveraging content marketing (whitepapers, social media) and ecosystem participation through the open-source Hashgraph community and the Hedera network rather than direct enterprise sales by Swirlds, Inc.
Swirlds firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Swirlds
- Legal name
- Swirlds, Inc.
- Website
- https://swirlds.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Swirlds, Inc. is a Dallas-based software company that developed the Hashgraph consensus algorithm — a formally verified, asynchronous Byzantine Fault Tolerant protocol enabling server-less distributed applications. The company now operates primarily as an open-source IP and brand holder, redirecting developers to the affiliated Hedera platform.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Swirlds industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Distributed Ledger Technology
- NAICS
- Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518)
- akta.pro primary industry
- DEX Aggregators & Smart Order Routing (FSAPADAC)
Keywords
Where Swirlds is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Dallas
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Swirlds business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Swirlds product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Swirlds develops the Hashgraph consensus algorithm, a distributed consensus mechanism that enables the construction of fully distributed applications (Shared Worlds) without traditional servers. The algorithm achieves asynchronous Byzantine Fault Tolerance through gossip-about-gossip and virtual voting, and was open sourced under Apache 2.0 license in 2022.
Product overview
Swirlds offers the Hashgraph consensus algorithm as its core technology, enabling Shared Worlds — fully distributed applications that operate without traditional servers. The product portfolio centers on the hashgraph algorithm (proven Byzantine fault tolerant with formal Coq verification), technical documentation suite, and open-source components. The platform enables rapid consensus achievement for secure, stable transactions at reduced cost compared to server-based alternatives.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Hashgraph: A consensus algorithm used to build and run shared worlds – fully distributed applications that harness the power of the cloud without servers. The algorithm was open sourced under Apache 2.0 license in 2022.
Products and services
- Hashgraph Consensus Algorithm A distributed consensus algorithm providing Byzantine fault tolerance, fairness, complete asynchrony, no leaders, no round robin, and no proof-of-work. Achieves fair Byzantine agreement on total order for transactions using gossip protocol and virtual voting. Open sourced under Apache 2.0 license.
- Shared Worlds Platform Fully distributed applications that harness the power of the cloud without servers. Built on the hashgraph consensus algorithm, enabling secure, stable, and sustainable transactions at reduced cost without single points of failure.
- Hashgraph Technical Reports Whitepapers and technical documentation including the core hashgraph algorithm specification (SWIRLDS-TR-2016-01), detailed examples (SWIRLDS-TR-2016-02), overview comparisons with blockchain, aBFT proof in Coq formal verification, and Korean translation. Available as downloadable PDFs from swirlds.com.
Companies that use Swirlds
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Swirlds technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Swirlds partnerships and signals
Strategic signalRecent moves4 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Swirlds competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat2 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Swirlds social profiles
Digital presenceSwirlds financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Swirlds leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Swirlds funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds3 records
Investors2 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Swirlds 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 Swirlds
What does Swirlds do?
Swirlds develops the Hashgraph consensus algorithm, a distributed consensus mechanism that enables the construction of fully distributed applications (Shared Worlds) without traditional servers. The algorithm achieves asynchronous Byzantine Fault Tolerance through gossip-about-gossip and virtual voting, and was open sourced under Apache 2.0 license in 2022.
Is Swirlds a public or private company?
Swirlds is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Swirlds founded?
Swirlds was founded in 2015. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Swirlds based?
Swirlds is headquartered in Dallas, United States, in the North America region.
Who are Swirlds's main competitors?
Hedera is listed as a direct peer.
Does Swirlds have an API?
Yes. Hedera network services provide a set of APIs enabling developers to create accounts, mint tokens, write data to the ledger, call smart contracts, and other functions. These APIs are part of the Hedera public ledger infrastructure that uses hashgraph consensus.
What industry is Swirlds in?
Swirlds's product category is Distributed Ledger Technology. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAPADAC, DEX Aggregators & Smart Order Routing. Its NAICS code is 518.