Cognism is a London-based B2B sales intelligence platform that provides compliant contact data, phone-verified mobile numbers, and buying intent signals to revenue teams across EMEA and North America. Founded in 2015 by James Isilay, the company built its reputation on GDPR and CCPA-compliant data, mobile coverage in markets where competitors struggle, and integrations with the major CRM and sales engagement tools.
The platform combines a global B2B contact database with technographic, firmographic, and intent data sourced from Bombora. Sales and marketing teams use Cognism to build prospect lists, enrich CRM records, surface in-market accounts, and route mobile-direct outreach. In 2025 the company launched Sales Companion, a unified prospecting interface, and Cortex AI, the underlying engine powering Smart Personas, AI Search, and AI-assisted account research.
Cognism raised an $87.5 million Series C in January 2022 led by Viking Global Investors and Blue Cloud Ventures, joined by AXA Venture Partners and Swisscom Ventures. The company has been acquisitive in its own right, having purchased Kaspr, Ricochet, and Mailtastic to expand European coverage and adjacent capabilities. In September 2025 Cognism appointed Dominic Allon as CEO, signalling a new growth phase.
The company serves more than 4,000 customers globally and competes most directly with ZoomInfo, Lusha, and Apollo. Cognism's differentiation rests on EMEA mobile coverage, do-not-call screening across major lists, and a compliance posture aimed at regulated industries and European sellers.