DHI

What DHI does

DHI A/S, headquartered in Hørsholm, Denmark, is a specialist water environment software and consulting firm founded in 1964 as the Danish Institute of Applied Hydraulics and operating under the governance of the DHI Foundation as a not-for-profit organization. The company has built a globally distributed business with 1,100 engineers and specialists across 26 countries and project delivery in 115+ countries, serving public-sector water agencies, engineering consultancies, energy and mining operators, ports and maritime authorities, and academic institutions. Its primary commercial offering is MIKE Powered by DHI, a comprehensive water modelling software suite covering coastal/marine, river, groundwater, urban water, and ecological systems through flagship platforms MIKE 21/3, MIKE+, and FEFLOW, supported by 20+ specialized modules and cloud-native operational tools.

DHI's underlying technology is built on 50+ years of computational hydraulics research, with proprietary numerical formulations and modular architecture spanning hydrodynamics, wave simulation, sediment transport, water quality, particle tracking, subsurface flow, and agent-based ecological modelling. The platform integrates with Azure Marketplace, ArcGIS Pro, MATLAB, Python, QGIS, Leapfrog, and GOCAD, and exposes MIKE Engine API and FEFLOW Python interfaces for custom developer workflows. The product portfolio is delivered through multiple licensing tiers — commercial subscription packages, perpetual licenses, usage-based MIKE on Azure, and an academic program providing free student labkits and 50%-discount research licenses — supplemented by consulting and advisory services delivered through global offices and THE ACADEMY training platform.

The business combines recurring software licensing revenue with project-based consulting delivered by domain scientists, and operates across six primary vertical segments: Cities & Urban Water, Energy, Marine & Coastal, Mining & Metals, Ports & Maritime, and Water Resources. Named enterprise and government customers include PUB Singapore, MPA Singapore, Surbana Jurong, Jacobs, Delhi Jal Board, and EGAT Thailand. As a not-for-profit entity owned by the DHI Foundation, DHI reinvests earnings into R&D and operates under a NetZero carbon neutrality commitment for 2025, with ISO certifications spanning quality, environment, information security, and occupational health and safety across Denmark and Singapore.

Name

DHI

Legal name

DHI A/S

Website

https://dhigroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1964

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

DHI A/S is a Danish not-for-profit water modelling software and consulting firm, founded in 1964, that develops the MIKE Powered by DHI software suite used by governments, utilities, and engineering consultancies across 115+ countries to simulate coastal, river, groundwater, and urban water systems.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Water and Environmental Modelling Software

NAICS

Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413), Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (22131)

SIC

Water Supply (4941), Industrial Instruments For Measurement, Display, And Control (3823)

akta.pro primary industry

Water, Wastewater & Hydraulics Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

NRW Data Management & Water Balance (IWA Methodology, GIS/SCADA Integration, Digital Twins) (EUANAKAJ), Commercial/Residential Building Water Management & Leak Analytics Services (HSAHAGAK)

Keywords

• Water modelling software
• Hydraulic engineering
• Groundwater simulation
• Coastal engineering software
• Environmental consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Hørsholm

HQ country

Denmark

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. Software Licenses: Enterprise water modelling software sold through subscription packages (annual) and perpetual licenses with modular pricing. Revenue generated from professional list prices with discounts for academic institutions (50% for university research).
2. Academic Licensing: Specialized licensing program for universities and research institutions including university research licenses (50% discount), classroom labkits (network licenses), and free student labkits for undergraduate/MSc/PhD thesis work.
3. Consulting and Advisory Services: Technical consulting and advisory services for water environment projects, delivered through global offices and expert modellers. Not-for-profit organization reinvests earnings into R&D.
4. Training Services: THE ACADEMY by DHI provides instructor-led courses, self-paced training, webinars, and customized in-house training for software users.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

DHI develops and sells the MIKE Powered by DHI software suite for modelling water environments including rivers, groundwater, coasts, oceans, and urban water systems. The company complements its software with technical consulting, engineering services, and decision-support tools used by governments, utilities, and engineering firms globally.

Product overview

DHI's product offering is a comprehensive, platform-based portfolio centred on the MIKE Powered by DHI software suite — an integrated water modelling ecosystem offering desktop and cloud-based solutions across the entire water cycle. The core platform encompasses three primary product lines: MIKE 21/3 for coastal, marine, and wave modelling; FEFLOW for groundwater and subsurface flow simulation; and MIKE+ for integrated urban water, river, and flood modelling. These are augmented by specialised modules (MIKE ECO Lab, ABM Lab, LITPACK, WEST, MIKE SHE, MIKE HYDRO Basin), cloud applications (MIKE Cloud, MIKE Data Link, MIKE Mesh Builder, MIKE Metocean Simulator), and digital operational tools (MIKE OPERATIONS, MIKE WaterNet Advisor, DHI CityFlow Live, DHI BlueCast, DHI PlumeCast, MIKE Mine, Leakage Monitor, NCOS ONLINE). Supporting developer tools include MIKE Engine API and MIKE for Developers. Licensing options include subscription packages, perpetual licenses, academic programs, and MIKE on Azure for cloud deployment.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• MIKE Powered by DHI Integrated software suite for modelling water environments including rivers, groundwater, coasts, oceans, and urban water systems, used by water authorities, consultancies, and researchers.
• MIKE 21/3 2D and 3D hydrodynamic and environmental modelling system for coasts, estuaries, oceans, and surface water bodies.
• FEFLOW Finite-element software for simulating groundwater flow, contaminant transport, and heat transfer in porous media.
• MIKE+ Integrated software for modelling urban water distribution, wastewater collection, and water quality in city networks.
• WEST Dynamic modelling software for the design and operation of municipal and industrial wastewater treatment plants.
• MIKE Cloud Cloud-hosted platform enabling users to run, manage, and share MIKE-based water simulations online.
• DHI CityFlow Live Operational software service for real-time urban hydrology and flood forecasting in city environments.
• DHI BlueCast AI-enabled forecasting product for water and environmental applications, extending the MIKE modelling suite.
• DHI PlumeCast Forecasting tool for simulating plume dispersion and water quality scenarios in aquatic environments.
• MIKE Mine Software suite for mine water management, tailings dam studies, and mining-related environmental impact assessments.
• Leakage Monitor Operational tool for monitoring, detecting, and reducing water leakage in distribution networks.
• NCOS ONLINE Online platform for operational coastal and ocean monitoring and forecasting.
• DHI Consulting and Engineering Services Project-based water, environmental, and coastal engineering consulting services delivered by DHI engineers worldwide.

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to 29% reduction in aeration energy through improved control
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

Feature10 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered strategic, core and flagship.

• VRVisstrategicTechnology or Integration · 11 June 2026Partnership to expand access to fast flood simulation technology. VRVis contributes computational expertise for accelerated flood modelling capabilities.
• Microsoft AzurecoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2024MIKE software available on Azure Marketplace enabling cloud deployment. Users can model in the cloud with no hardware limitations using Azure computational resources.
• UNEP-DHI PartnershipflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1996Established UNEP-DHI Partnership – Centre on Water and Environment, a United Nations Environment Programme centre of expertise dedicated to improving management, development and use of freshwater resources from local to global level.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Ansys: Ansys Fluent and Ansys Workbench provide multiphysics CFD capabilities used in environmental, coastal, and industrial water-flow simulations. As a broad simulation incumbent with deep R&D budgets, Ansys competes for high-end CFD use cases that overlap with MIKE 3.
• Trimble Water: Trimble provides GIS, utility, and infrastructure software used by water utilities and engineering firms, with overlapping workflow integration in surveying and asset management that competes with DHI's MIKE OPERATIONS and WaterNet Advisor offerings.
• Schneider Electric (AVEVA / Water): Schneider Electric's AVEVA portfolio and water utility SCADA offerings overlap with DHI's operational software (MIKE OPERATIONS, DHI CityFlow Live) for real-time water network monitoring and control, serving similar municipal and industrial water customers.
• Esri (ArcGIS Pro / ArcGIS Hydro): Esri's ArcGIS platform is embedded in DHI's own MIKE+ integration but also offers spatial analytics and water utility extensions that partially overlap with DHI's offerings. As the dominant GIS platform for utilities, Esri is both a partner and a competitive threat.
• Autodesk (InfoWorks / InfoWater): Autodesk acquired Innovyze in 2021, adding InfoWater, InfoWorks ICM, and InfoSWMM to its broader AEC portfolio. These products compete directly with MIKE+ for stormwater, sewer, and water distribution modelling, while Autodesk's larger platform reach threatens DHI's standalone position.

Emerging players

• Itasca (Hydrogeological Software): Itasca's hydrogeological codes (MINEDW, MODFLOW-related tools) compete with FEFLOW for mining and groundwater applications. Itasca is a focused specialist with strong credentials in mining water management, an area where DHI's MIKE Mine also competes.
• Kisters: Kisters provides water information systems including KiH and 3S-Hydraulics used by utilities for water resources management. It competes with portions of DHI's MIKE HYDRO Basin and WaterNet Advisor offerings among European utilities.

Direct peers

• Aquaveo: Aquaveo develops SMS (Surface-water Modeling System) and GMS (Groundwater Modeling System), which compete head-to-head with MIKE 21/3 and FEFLOW respectively for surface water and groundwater modelling among engineering consultancies and academic users.
• Bentley Systems: Bentley's OpenFlows suite (WaterGEMS, SewerGEMS, HAMMER) directly competes with DHI's MIKE+ for urban water distribution and wastewater network modelling. Bentley is a broad infrastructure engineering platform incumbent with overlapping customer base among engineering consultancies and utilities.
• Flow Science: Flow Science's FLOW-3D is a computational fluid dynamics platform used for hydraulic, coastal, and environmental simulations. It overlaps with DHI's MIKE 3 for 3D hydrodynamics and is used by similar engineering and research customers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@DHIGroup
• Facebookfacebook.com/DHIgroup
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dhi
• Xx.com/dhigroup

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 DHI