What KDAB does

KDAB (legal entity Klarälvdalens Datakonsult AB) is a Sweden-headquartered software consultancy founded in 1999 that specializes in Qt, C++, Rust, and 3D/embedded software development. It is the largest independent Qt consultancy worldwide, holding Qt Platinum partner status and ISO 9001 certification (the first Qt consultancy to achieve either distinction). The firm serves enterprise customers across medical, biotech, renewable energy, aviation, automotive, industrial automation, defense, and electronics/semiconductors, with named engagements including Siemens Energy's Plant Asset Manager, Lufthansa Technik's cabin management system, NVIDIA's developer tools, and HMI platforms for MOTOR Ai's Level 4 autonomous vehicles.

The company's technology footprint combines deep services expertise with a portfolio of more than 15 open-source and proprietary developer tools, including KDGpu (a Vulkan wrapper for modern graphics APIs), KDXr (OpenXR integration), CXX-Qt (bidirectional Rust-C++ bindings with Qt), GammaRay (Qt application introspection), Hotspot (Linux perf GUI), KDDockWidgets, KDBindings, KD Chart, KD Reports, Kuesa 3D, and the MECAPS embedded starter template. Headcount stands at 100+ employees from 20 countries, supported by offices in Sweden, Germany, the UK, France, and the USA, plus dedicated training academies in Berlin and Macclesfield.

KDAB's revenue model is professional services: software consulting, custom development, and developer training, all delivered through direct enterprise sales and reinforced by content marketing, conference participation (Qt World Summit, Embedded World, Oxidize, NDC Techtown, Open Source Summit), and open-source developer-relations. Pricing is not publicly disclosed; engagements are negotiated, with training offered as scheduled public courses, in-company programs, and remote sessions. The company is privately held and founder-led (President and CEO Matthias Kalle Dalheimer), with no disclosed venture capital, private equity, or parent-company ownership.

Name

KDAB

Legal name

Klarälvdalens Datakonsult AB

Website

https://kdab.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

KDAB is a Sweden-based software consultancy, founded in 1999, specializing in Qt, C++, Rust, and 3D/embedded development for enterprise customers in medical, aerospace, automotive, energy, and defense sectors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Software Consulting & Embedded Development Services

NAICS

Computer Systems Design and Related Services (54151)

SIC

Services-Computer Programming Services (7371)

akta.pro primary industry

Quality Engineering & Test Automation (QE/QA) (BPAEAFAJ)

Keywords

• Qt consulting
• C++ development
• Embedded software
• Rust integration
• Software training

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Software Consulting: Expert advice and guidance on technology selection, architecture, and development processes across desktop and embedded software.
2. Software Development: Custom software development services for embedded devices and cross-platform desktop applications.
3. Developer Training: Professional developer training courses in Qt/QML, Modern C++, Rust, 3D/OpenGL, Debugging & Profiling, and more. Offered as scheduled courses, in-company training, or remote training.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

KDAB provides expert software consulting, custom development, and professional training for cross-platform desktop and embedded applications built with Qt, C++, Rust, and 3D/OpenGL/Vulkan technologies. The firm delivers architecture guidance, performance optimization, legacy modernization (e.g., Windows CE to embedded Linux), and tooling through a portfolio of open-source developer libraries (KDGpu, CXX-Qt, GammaRay, Hotspot, KDDockWidgets, etc.) and scheduled/in-company training courses.

Product overview

KDAB is a globally recognized software consulting, development, and training company specializing in embedded devices and complex cross-platform desktop applications. The company offers professional services alongside a portfolio of open-source tools and libraries. Their technology expertise spans Qt/QML, Modern C++, Rust, 3D/OpenGL/Vulkan graphics, Slint GUI toolkit, Flutter, and various platforms including Linux, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, and real-time OS. KDAB maintains an active open-source ecosystem including KDGpu (a Vulkan wrapper making modern graphics accessible), KDXr (OpenXR for XR development), CXX-Qt (Rust-Qt bidirectional bindings), GammaRay (Qt debugging), Hotspot (Linux perf analysis), KD Chart (charting), KD Reports (reporting), KDDockWidgets (docking panels), KDBindings (signals/slots library), KDUtils (cross-platform core), KDGui (windowing), and Kuesa 3D (glTF workflow). Their professional training division offers courses in Qt/QML, Modern C++, Rust, 3D programming, and debugging. KDAB serves diverse industries including Medical, Biotech, Science, Renewable Energy, Transportation, Mobility, Aviation, Automation, Electronics, Agriculture, and Defense.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• KDAB Training: Professional software training division offering courses in Qt/QML, Modern C++, Rust, 3D/OpenGL, Debugging & Profiling, and Developer Tools.
• KDAB Labs
• KDGpu
• CXX-Qt

Products and services

• Software Consulting Expert advisory services covering technology selection, architecture, development processes, performance optimization, and modernization across desktop and embedded software for enterprise customers.
• Software Development Custom software development services for embedded devices and cross-platform desktop applications, including Qt/QML, Modern C++, Rust, and 3D/OpenGL/Vulkan-based projects.
• KDAB Training Professional developer training covering Qt/QML, Modern C++, Rust, 3D/OpenGL, Debugging and Profiling, and Dev Tools and Practices; delivered via scheduled public courses, in-company programs, and remote/online sessions at KDAB Training Centers in Berlin and Macclesfield.
• KDGpu Open-source thin wrapper around the Vulkan graphics API that simplifies object lifetime management, synchronization, and memory handling to make modern graphics APIs more accessible.
• KDXr Open-source OpenXR integration library bundled with KDGpu that supports XR compositor layers, head tracking, input handling, and haptic feedback for AR/VR applications.
• CXX-Qt Open-source set of Rust crates that create bidirectional Rust to C++ bindings with Qt, allowing QObject subclasses in Rust to be used from C++, QML, and JavaScript.
• GammaRay Open-source Qt application introspective debugger for runtime inspection and post-mortem analysis of Qt applications.
• Hotspot Open-source standalone GUI for the Linux perf performance-analysis tool, providing a modern alternative to perf report for CPU performance data.
• KD Chart Open-source feature-rich charting library for data visualization in Qt applications.
• KD Reports Open-source report-generation library for Qt applications producing documents such as PDF reports.
• KDDockWidgets Open-source Qt docking-panels library for building complex docking window layouts, used by NVIDIA and others.
• KDBindings Header-only C++17 library implementing signals and slots design pattern with property and bindings system for reactive programming in C++.
• KD SOAP Open-source SOAP web services toolkit for Qt applications.
• Kuesa 3D Runtime Open-source Qt module library built on Qt 3D providing a glTF 2.0 compliant loader, Kuesa extensions support, animation playback, and post-processing effects for design-to-code 3D workflows.
• MECAPS Open-source Modern Embedded C++ Application Starter template bundling KDUtils as application core, Slint for UI, and CMake for the build system.
• KDUtils Open-source cross-platform application core library used as the foundation for embedded C++ applications.

Quantifiable outcome

• Hundreds of successful projects across diverse industries
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature10 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Texas InstrumentscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTexas Instruments chose KDAB as a recommended software partner due to their broad expertise in embedded software engineering. KDAB creates demos using Qt, Flutter and Slint on TI hardware platforms. KDAB also helps TI customers build custom embedded devices on Texas Instruments hardware.
• Qt GroupflagshipTechnology or IntegrationKDAB is a Qt Platinum partner, the highest level of partnership with the Qt Group. KDAB has been providing Qt expertise since 1999 and was the first Qt consultancy.
• Ferrous SystemsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration for Rust training courses. Ferrous Systems provides Rust expertise while KDAB distributes the training through their platform.
• enioka Haute CoutureminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration for software engineering focused training courses including Test-Driven Development and Version Control and Collaboration with Git.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• ICS (Integrated Computer Solutions): US-based software consultancy specializing in Qt, embedded UI, and cross-platform development. Directly competes with KDAB in the Qt consulting niche and serves overlapping enterprise customers in medical, industrial, and aerospace.
• Witekio: French embedded software consultancy with deep expertise in Yocto, Linux, Qt, and connected device development. Comparable business model (consulting + training) and similar customer verticals (industrial, medical, automotive).
• basysKom: German Qt and embedded software consultancy with strong focus on industrial automation and IoT. Direct peer in the Qt services market with similar headcount scale and European customer base.
• AW Software: Software consultancy offering Qt development services and embedded solutions. Comparable boutique-scale Qt services competitor operating primarily in the German-speaking market.

Broad incumbents

• The Qt Company: Vendor of the Qt framework itself and a Qt Platinum partner of KDAB. While not a direct consulting competitor, it shares deep Qt expertise and often co-engages with KDAB on customer deployments, making it the closest incumbent reference.
• Elektrobit: Automotive embedded software specialist and EB tresos/EB GUIDE vendor. Operates in adjacent automotive HMI and embedded software space where KDAB also serves customers (digital cockpits, IVI).
• Luxoft (DXC Technology): Large-scale IT services firm with strong embedded and automotive software practice. Competes with KDAB for large enterprise embedded engineering RFPs but at significantly greater scale and broader scope.

Emerging players

• Collabora: Open-source software consultancy offering embedded Linux, graphics, and Rust expertise. Comparable open-source-first culture and partial overlap on Wayland/Linux perf, Vulkan, and cross-platform development.
• Scythe Studio: Polish Qt software house specializing in embedded UI, QML, and cross-platform development. Comparable boutique Qt consultancy serving European enterprise customers with similar technology stack.

Others

• Slint: Vendor of the Slint GUI toolkit, of which KDAB is an official service partner. Adjacent technology relationship; Slint's adoption directly expands KDAB's addressable service market beyond pure Qt.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/kdabqt
• GitHubgithub.com/KDAB
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@KDABtv
• Facebookfacebook.com/kdabqt
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kdab

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries2 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 KDAB