Crimson Hexagon
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Consumer insights, Artificial intelligence, Social media analytics |
| Founded | 2007 |
| Founder | Gary King, Candace Fleming |
| Defunct | 2018 |
| Fate | Merged with Brandwatch |
| Headquarters | Boston , United States |
Area served | Global |
Key people | Stephanie Newby (CEO, from 2012) |
| Products | ForSight platform, Affinities feature, reverse image search technology |
| Parent | Brandwatch (post-merger) |
Crimson Hexagon was a consumer insights firm utilizing artificial intelligence, headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, with an additional office located in London, England. In 2018, the company combined operations with rival Brandwatch, continuing under the Brandwatch brand.
The company's extensive dataset comprised more than one trillion publicly accessible posts sourced from social media platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, alongside content from blogs, forums, and news outlets. Crimson Hexagon’s ForSight platform, which remained operational following the merger, held certification as a Twitter Certified Product.
Its evaluations of ongoing trends and events were regularly referenced by various media outlets. The Pew Research Center employed its social media analytics tools to examine media representation and public conversations. Additionally, in 2013, Crimson Hexagon collaborated with the Russian government to track social media activity on platforms including LiveJournal and Twitter. This cooperation resulted in Facebook terminating its partnership with the company in 2018 amid surveillance-related concerns.
History
Founded in 2007 by Gary King and Candace Fleming, Crimson Hexagon originated from innovations developed at Harvard University’s Institute for Quantitative Social Science. Stephanie Newby was named CEO in 2012.
In March 2014, the company unveiled its Affinities feature, designed to help marketers uncover the interests of audiences engaging with brands or products across social media channels.
On September 5, 2018, Crimson Hexagon launched the sector’s inaugural reverse image search technology.
The merger with Brandwatch was officially announced on October 4, 2018.