Discovery › software
Software sector taxonomy
Date: 2026-03-28 Purpose: Comprehensive map of software subsectors for systematic value screening. Tracks which areas have been covered and which remain open.
Enterprise Application Software
| Subsector | Examples | Screened? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| ERP / Business Suites | SAP, ORCL, INTU | Yes (partial) | SAP on watchlist, ORCL in portfolio |
| CRM / Sales Automation | CRM, HUBS | Yes | CRM shortlisted |
| HCM / Payroll | WDAY, ADP, PCTY, PAYC | Yes | WDAY, ADP shortlisted; PCTY in portfolio |
| Financial Planning & Analysis | WDAY (finance), ADSK | Partial | |
| Procurement / Spend Management | COUPA (private), SAP Ariba | N/A | Most are private or acquired |
| Project / Work Management | TEAM, ASAN, MNDY | Partial | TEAM in portfolio |
Vertical SaaS (Industry-Specific)
| Subsector | Examples | Screened? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Healthcare IT / Life Sciences | VEEV, HIMS, CERT, PHREESIA | Partial | VEEV on watchlist |
| Legal Tech | CSGP (CoStar legal data) | No | Mostly private (Clio, etc.) |
| Construction / AEC | PROCORE, AUTODESK | No | |
| Real Estate / PropTech | CSGP, APPF, RLGY | No | |
| Restaurant / Hospitality | TOAST, LGHT, NCR (Voyix) | No | |
| Insurance Tech | GWRE, DCT, PCOR | Partial | GWRE in portfolio |
| Education Tech | INST (Instructure), LRN | No | |
| Government / GovTech | TYL, CACI | No | Tyler Technologies is interesting |
| Agriculture / FarmTech | AGRI platforms | No | Mostly private |
| Automotive Software | CDK, CARS | No | |
| Media / Publishing | PUBM, MGNI | No |
Infrastructure Software
| Subsector | Examples | Screened? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud Infrastructure / IaaS | AWS/MSFT/GOOG (too big) | N/A | Mega-caps, not pure-play screened |
| DevOps / CI-CD | GTLB, ESTC, JFrog | In progress | Scout running |
| Containers / Kubernetes | Docker (private), DDOG | Partial | |
| Observability / APM | DT, DDOG, ESTC, SPK | Partial | DT in portfolio |
| IT Service Management | NOW, BMC (private) | N/A | NOW in portfolio |
| App Delivery / Load Balancing | FFIV, NET | Partial | FFIV on watchlist |
| Networking Software / SD-WAN | CSCO, VMW (acquired) | No |
Data & Analytics
| Subsector | Examples | Screened? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Data Warehousing / Lakehouse | SNOW, DBX | Partial | SNOW in portfolio |
| Data Streaming / Events | CFLT | Partial | CFLT in portfolio |
| Business Intelligence / Viz | QLYS-adjacent, Domo, TIBCO | No | |
| Data Integration / ETL | TALEND (acquired), INFA | No | Informatica is interesting |
| Data Governance / Quality | Collibra (private), Alation | No | Mostly private |
| Enterprise Search / Knowledge | ELASTIC (ESTC) | No | |
| Legacy Data Platforms | TDC | Yes | TDC on watchlist |
Cybersecurity
| Subsector | Examples | Screened? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Network / Firewall | CHKP, PANW, FTNT | Yes | CHKP on watchlist, PANW in portfolio |
| Endpoint / XDR | CRWD, S (SentinelOne) | Partial | CRWD in portfolio |
| Identity / IAM | OKTA, CYBR, PING (acquired) | Partial | OKTA in portfolio |
| Cloud Security / CNAPP | ZS, CRWD, WIZ (private) | No | ZS screened but too expensive |
| Email / Phishing | PFPT (acquired), ABN | No | Most acquired |
| GRC / Compliance | QLYS, SAIL, VRNS | Partial | QLYS in portfolio |
| Privileged Access | CYBR | No | |
| Security Analytics / SIEM | SPLK (acquired), ESTC | No |
AI / Machine Learning
| Subsector | Examples | Screened? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI Infrastructure / MLOps | PLTR, AI (C3.ai), BBAI | In progress | Scout running |
| Conversational AI / Chatbots | Smaller companies, mostly private | No | |
| AI-Enhanced Software | Embedded across sectors | N/A | Feature, not standalone sector |
| Computer Vision | ISRG (robotics), Cognex | No | |
| NLP / Document AI | DOCU (owns some), private | Partial | DOCU in portfolio |
Communication & Collaboration
| Subsector | Examples | Screened? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| UCaaS / Video | ZM, RNG, LOGM | In progress | Scout running |
| CPaaS / APIs | TWLO, BAND, VONAGE (acquired) | Partial | TWLO in portfolio |
| Team Messaging | TEAM (Slack-adjacent) | Partial | |
| Contact Center | NICE, FIVN, TALKDESK (private) | No | NICE could be interesting |
Marketing & Commerce
| Subsector | Examples | Screened? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marketing Automation | HUBS, BRZE, ITBL | In progress | Scout running |
| AdTech / Programmatic | TTD, PUBM, MGNI, APPS | Partial | TTD in portfolio |
| E-commerce Platforms | SHOP, BIGC, VTEX | No | |
| CMS / Digital Experience | WIX, SQSP | No | |
| SEO / Content | SEMR | No |
Automation & Integration
| Subsector | Examples | Screened? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| RPA / Intelligent Automation | PATH, AAAI (private) | Partial | PATH in portfolio |
| iPaaS / Integration | SNAP (SnapLogic prv), Boomi (prv), MuleSoft (acq) | In progress | Scout running; mostly private/acquired |
| Low-Code / No-Code | APPIAN (APPN), Mendix (Siemens) | In progress | APPN worth checking |
| Workflow / BPM | APPN, ServiceNow | Partial | NOW in portfolio |
Financial & Risk Software
| Subsector | Examples | Screened? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Payments / Processing | V, GPN, FI, FISV, BR | Yes | V, BR, GPN on watchlist; FISV in portfolio |
| Banking / Lending Software | NCNO, FIS, JACK | Partial | |
| Risk / Fraud Analytics | FICO, VRSK, NICE | No | FICO screened but too expensive |
| Accounting / ERP (SMB) | INTU, XERO, BILL | Partial | INTU in portfolio |
| Capital Markets Tech | SS&C (SSNC), ION (private) | No | SSNC could be interesting |
Industrial / Specialized Software
| Subsector | Examples | Screened? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| CAD / PLM / Engineering | PTC, ANSS, ADSK | Partial | PTC on watchlist |
| EDA / Chip Design | SNPS, CDNS | Partial | SNPS in portfolio |
| Simulation / Digital Twin | ANSS, ALTAIR | No | |
| GIS / Geospatial | ESRI (private) | N/A | |
| Supply Chain Software | MANH, KNWN, Blue Yonder (prv) | Partial | MANH on watchlist |
| Manufacturing / MES | Rockwell (ROK), SIRI | No |
Screening Priority (Untouched High-Potential Areas)
These subsectors have NOT been screened and are most likely to yield value opportunities in the current software rout:
- GovTech (TYL) — recession-resistant government contracts, sticky switching costs
- Capital Markets Software (SSNC) — financial infrastructure, recurring revenue
- Contact Center / CX (NICE, FIVN) — AI disruption narrative may be creating overcorrection
- Construction / AEC (PROCORE, ADSK) — digitization still early innings
- E-commerce Platforms (SHOP, BIGC) — massive corrections from COVID highs
- Simulation / Digital Twin (ANSS, ALTAIR) — engineering moats, AI tailwind
- Data Integration (INFA) — critical plumbing for AI/data pipelines
- Automotive / Dealer Software (CDK) — vertical monopoly
- Restaurant / Hospitality Tech (TOAST) — massive TAM, early penetration
Coverage Summary
| Status | Count | Subsectors |
|---|---|---|
| Well-screened | ~12 | ERP, CRM, HCM, Payments, Cybersecurity (network/endpoint), IT Services, IT Distribution, Data Warehouse |
| Partially screened | ~10 | Vertical SaaS (healthcare), DevOps, Identity, Observability, AdTech, Automation |
| In progress (scouts running) | ~8 | AI infra, DevOps, Communication, MarTech, Low-code, Vertical SaaS expansion |
| Not yet screened | ~15 | GovTech, CapMarkets, Contact Center, Construction, E-commerce, Simulation, Data Integration, Automotive SW |