What Civilized Software does

Civilized Software Inc. is a privately held, founder-controlled software company founded in 1985 by Gary D. Knott, Ph.D. and headquartered at 12109 Heritage Park Circle, Silver Spring, Maryland. The company develops and sells MLAB, an advanced mathematical and statistical modeling system originally created by Knott at NIH beginning in 1970. MLAB targets scientific researchers and engineers who need to solve simulation and modeling problems such as chemical kinetics, pharmacological compartmental models, multiple site ligand binding, neurophysiological modeling, ultracentrifuge models, and — most distinctively — general differential equation models. The product is delivered as a downloadable application for Windows, Linux, and macOS, with a built-in GOVOL LISP interpreter for model specification, and ships with an extensive documentation library spanning roughly 900 pages of manuals (reference, applications, graphics examples, beginner's guide, dynamical simulations). Civilized Software also publishes the book Interpreting Lisp with bundled C source for a LISP interpreter, and offers standalone downloadable C implementations of optimal smoothing splines, cubic spline interpolation, and Unix message-queue IPC.

The company operates on a traditional one-time software-license revenue model with free evaluation copies distributed via direct download from civilized.com, supplemented by Data Analysis and Modeling Services offered as professional consulting engagements. Distribution is direct-to-customer globally with the exception of Japan, where TipTop Software serves as exclusive channel reseller. Customers are concentrated in academic, biochemistry, pharmacology, and medical research communities, with usage referenced in numerous peer-reviewed scientific publications spanning decades. The company runs with 1-10 employees and is currently seeking its first external capital — angel or venture — specifically to support a marketing build-out, alongside an open hire for a Director of Sales and Marketing, signaling an attempted transition from a bootstrapped, founder-led operation toward a more commercially scaled enterprise.

Name

Civilized Software

Legal name

Civilized Software Inc.

Website

https://civilized.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Civilized Software Inc., founded 1985 and based in Silver Spring, Maryland, develops and sells MLAB, an advanced mathematical and statistical modeling system used by academic and pharmaceutical researchers for differential-equation modeling, curve-fitting, and simulation across Windows, Linux, and macOS.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Silver Spring

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations

Revenue model

1. MLAB Software Licenses: Sale of MLAB mathematical and statistical modeling software for PC (Windows, Linux), Macintosh, and other platforms. Free evaluation copies available; full licenses for commercial use.
2. Data Analysis and Modeling Services: Professional services providing data analysis and modeling assistance to customers using MLAB or requiring specialized analysis.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Civilized Software develops, sells, and supports MLAB, an advanced mathematical and statistical modeling system used by scientists and researchers for mathematical exploration, simulation, and modeling problems such as chemical kinetics, pharmacological compartmental models, multiple site ligand binding, neurophysiological modeling, ultracentrifuge models, and differential equation models. MLAB is sold as a one-time licensed software product for Windows, Linux, Macintosh, SGI, and NeXT platforms, complemented by Data Analysis and Modeling professional services.

Product overview

Civilized Software offers MLAB, a unified mathematical and statistical modeling system primarily for scientific research applications. The core product is MLAB, supported by four comprehensive PDF manuals (Reference Manual, Applications Manual, Graphics Examples Manual, and Beginner's Guide). The company also publishes the book 'Interpreting Lisp' with accompanying C source code for a LISP interpreter. Additionally, several C source code files for mathematical algorithms (smoothing splines, cubic interpolation, message queue functions) are made freely available for download. MLAB supports computation capabilities including algebraic models, differential equations, curve-fitting, regression analysis, matrix algebra, Fourier transforms, and 2D/3D graphics.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• MLAB: An advanced mathematical and statistical modeling system designed for mathematical exploration, simulation, modeling problems including chemical kinetics, pharmacological compartmental models, multiple site ligand binding, neurophysiological modeling, and ultracentrifuge models. MLAB handles differential equation models and is available for PC (DOS, Windows, Linux), Macintosh, SGI, and NeXT platforms.

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• TipTop SoftwarecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTipTop Software is the exclusive distributor for MLAB in Japan. Customers wanting to purchase MLAB in Japan are directed to visit TipTop Software's website at tiptop.com.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Wolfram Research: Developer of Mathematica, a symbolic and numerical computation system used heavily in scientific research. Comparable to MLAB in its mathematical exploration, differential equation solving, and publication-quality visualization capabilities.
• StataCorp: Developer of Stata, an integrated statistical software package used by researchers in biostatistics, epidemiology, and the social sciences. Comparable to MLAB in statistical modeling and scientific research use cases, with a similar perpetual-license business model.
• GraphPad Software: Developer of GraphPad Prism, a statistics and graphing tool for biologists and pharmacologists. Directly comparable to MLAB in its life-science research focus, curve fitting, and statistical analysis use cases.
• MathWorks: Developer of MATLAB, the dominant numerical computing environment for engineers and scientists. Directly comparable to MLAB as a mathematical modeling and simulation platform, with much broader scope and a far larger installed base in academic and industrial research.
• Maplesoft: Developer of Maple, a mathematical software system used for symbolic computation, differential equations, and technical visualization. Comparable to MLAB in mathematical modeling, ODE solving, and scientific/academic customer base.
• OriginLab: Developer of Origin, a data analysis and graphing software widely used by scientists and engineers. Closely comparable to MLAB in target customer (bench scientists needing curve fitting, statistics, and publication-quality plots) and one-time license model.

Emerging players

• Julia Computing: Commercial steward of the Julia programming language, used for high-performance scientific and numerical computing. Comparable to MLAB in scientific computing and differential equation solving, but represents a newer open-source-driven alternative approach.
• The R Foundation: Steward of the R programming language and environment for statistical computing and graphics, widely adopted in academic research and life sciences. Comparable to MLAB in statistical modeling, curve fitting, and scientific use cases, and a meaningful open-source substitute.

Broad incumbents

• SAS Institute: Developer of the SAS analytics platform, a broader statistical and data management suite used in pharmaceutical, life sciences, and academic research. Comparable to MLAB in statistical modeling for life sciences, but operates at much greater scale across many verticals.
• IBM (SPSS Statistics): SPSS Statistics is a long-established statistical analysis platform under IBM, widely used in social science, health, and market research. Comparable to MLAB's statistical modeling and hypothesis testing functionality, though at much broader enterprise scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/civilized-software-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Civilized Software