Ontoforce

About Ontoforce

Ontoforce provides a data and knowledge platform, DISQOVER, designed for the life sciences industry to accelerate research and drug development. Founded in 2011 in Ghent, Belgium, by Hans Constandt and Tom Vankemmel, the company originated from Constandt's personal struggle as a data scientist to find integrated information about his child's illness. This experience highlighted the inefficiencies of searching across disconnected data sources, leading to the creation of a platform to unify complex information. Though initially conceived as a business-to-consumer (B2C) tool for patients, the company quickly pivoted to a business-to-business (B2B) model targeting the pharmaceutical and biotech sectors.

The company's core product, DISQOVER, is a knowledge discovery platform that uses an ontology-based knowledge graph and semantic technology. It integrates siloed public, private, and licensed data sources into a single, user-friendly interface, allowing users to perform complex searches without needing advanced technical skills. The platform makes disparate data discoverable and analyzable, addressing every stage of drug development, from research and biomarker identification to clinical trials and regulatory submissions. DISQOVER manages over 140 public data sources and enables clients to ingest their own proprietary data, which can remain within their own environment. Key features include the ability to build patient cohorts for virtual research, power AI/ML workflows, and integrate with other enterprise systems and electronic lab notebooks (ELNs).

Ontoforce operates on a subscription-based business model, serving pharmaceutical companies, biotech firms, large hospitals, and universities. Its client roster includes major industry players like AstraZeneca, Amgen, Merck, and UCB. Headquartered in Ghent, Belgium, the company also has a U.S. office in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Over the years, Ontoforce has raised a total of $9.13M across 8 funding rounds, with its most significant being a Series B round in January 2018. On May 20, 2025, Brecht Claerhout was appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer.