Grammarly, a renowned name in language assistance, has made a significant move by acquiring productivity startup Coda. This acquisition is set to reshape the landscape of AI productivity and bring together the best of both worlds. On Tuesday, the company announced this exciting deal, which will see Coda's CEO and co-founder, Shishir Mehrotra, take the helm as the new CEO of Grammarly.
Uniting Language and Productivity with Grammarly's Acquisition
Benefits of the Acquisition
The financial terms of the deal remain undisclosed, but it holds great promise. With the addition of Coda's AI tools and products, Grammarly aims to transform its AI assistant into a comprehensive "AI productivity platform". This will provide Grammarly customers with access to new features like generative AI chat and a productivity suite, enabling them to work more efficiently.
Rahul Roy-Chowdhury, Grammarly's current CEO, is stepping down from his role and will work alongside Mehrotra as an adviser. Mehrotra, a 25-year tech veteran with extensive experience at YouTube as chief product officer and chief technology officer, has outlined his vision for Grammarly. He envisions an AI assistant that is even smarter and more helpful, with permission-aware connections to all other systems such as email, docs, CRM, and project trackers.
Upgrading Coda Docs
In addition to the overall transformation, Coda's core product, Coda Docs, will also be upgraded with the Grammarly Assistant. Mehrotra writes that in the longer term, they plan to seamlessly integrate the best of Coda and Grammarly. This will combine company knowledge, generative AI chat features, a full productivity suite, and hundreds of agents to help users work smarter. It is a bold step towards redefining productivity in the AI era.
Grammarly, founded in 2009, has 40 million active users and is valued at $13 billion. Coda, which was valued at $1.4 billion after its Series D raise in 2021, brings a unique set of capabilities to the table. As AI assistants become more accessible, this acquisition positions Grammarly to compete more effectively with companies building AI tools for writing and productivity.
