Digital Science has announced the acquisition of Ontopic, a pioneer in Virtual Knowledge Graph (VKG) technology, reinforcing its commitment to advancing data-driven research solutions and enterprise AI capabilities.
Headquartered in Bolzano, Italy, Ontopic is a spin-off from Free University of Bozen-Bolzano and is widely recognized for its expertise in Ontop, a leading open-source framework for Virtual Knowledge Graphs and Ontology-Based Data Access (OBDA). The acquisition marks a significant step in Digital Science’s mission to democratize research data and transform fragmented information into actionable insights.
Integration for Enhanced Semantic Discovery
As part of the integration, Ontopic’s core technology and flagship product, Ontopic Studio, will be combined with metaphactory, Digital Science’s knowledge democratization platform. This will allow organizations to build and access Knowledge Graphs directly from existing data sources without the need for complex and resource-intensive data transformation processes.
By merging Ontopic’s data virtualization capabilities with metaphactory’s low-code semantic modeling environment, Digital Science aims to deliver a seamless, end-to-end pipeline that supports a “Knowledge-First” enterprise approach, enabling faster and more efficient decision-making.
Strengthening Knowledge Graph Expertise
Following the acquisition, the Ontopic team will join Digital Science’s newly formed Knowledge Graph Competency group, serving as a center of excellence for semantic technologies. This group will drive innovation across Digital Science’s portfolio, including platforms such as Dimensions and Altmetric.
The Ontopic leadership team will take on key roles within this group, ensuring their academic and technical expertise contributes directly to the company’s long-term innovation strategy.
Leadership Perspectives
Sebastian Schmidt, EVP of the Enterprise segment at Digital Science, highlighted the strategic importance of the acquisition, noting that customers increasingly demand agile and scalable solutions for integrating data into semantic layers and knowledge graphs.
Peter Hopfgartner, CEO and Co-Founder of Ontopic, described the move as a pivotal milestone, emphasizing the growing need for enterprises to build intelligent, AI-ready data ecosystems. He noted that the combined technologies will enable AI systems to reason over real-time, distributed data with greater context and efficiency.
Alex Weissensteiner, Rector of the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, welcomed the development, stating that Ontopic’s acquisition validates its strong foundation in research and innovation. He also confirmed that Ontopic will continue to operate from Bolzano, maintaining its focus on research and development in Virtual Knowledge Graphs.
Driving the Future of Data and AI
This acquisition underscores Digital Science’s vision of empowering organizations with advanced semantic technologies and AI-driven insights. By integrating Ontopic’s capabilities, the company is poised to deliver more scalable, intelligent, and future-ready solutions for enterprises navigating increasingly complex data environments.
