What do they actually do
MinusX adds an AI side‑chat into analytics tools teams already use. Through a Chrome extension, it works inside Metabase and Jupyter to answer natural‑language questions, generate or edit SQL/MBQL, and operate the host app by clicking and typing to create queries, charts, and notebook changes in place homepage, Metabase AI, HN launch.
For Metabase, it supports dashboard Q&A, MBQL/SQL assistance, embedding/white‑label for apps, and scheduled smart reports/alerts; for Jupyter, it helps extend and explore notebooks in‑place Metabase AI, Embedded AI. The team publishes docs, a public GitHub repo, a playground, and the extension download, and offers free, Pro, Team, and Enterprise plans with usage‑credit limits to set expectations docs, GitHub, pricing.
Who are their target customer(s)
- Data analyst using Metabase or Jupyter for ad‑hoc work: Spends time writing/debugging SQL, switching between notebooks and dashboards, and turning one‑off analyses into repeatable charts instead of exploring insights homepage, HN launch.
- Product manager who needs quick answers without SQL: Waits on analysts or wrestles with tools; needs clear charts or scheduled reports they can trust without moving data between systems homepage, embedded demo.
- Analytics/BI engineer maintaining data models and tooling: Handles repetitive query requests and dashboard onboarding; wants to reduce support toil and keep data in existing infrastructure, with self‑host/open options FOSS blog, GitHub.
- BI/IT admin running Metabase/Jupyter securely: Must balance access with security, auditing, and compliance; needs admin controls, SOC2/privacy features, and reliable onboarding/support pricing, docs.
- Product or engineering team embedding analytics in a customer app: Needs in‑app answers for end users without building an assistant from scratch; wants quick white‑label embedding embedded demo.
How would they acquire their first 10, 50, and 100 customers
- First 10: Founder‑led pilots with early adopters from the HN launch and Metabase/Jupyter communities; offer short free pilots with white‑glove setup, track usage, and convert 60–90 days in using clear Pro/Team pricing and credit limits HN launch, pricing, case studies.
- First 50: Lean into free/self‑host to attract developers via GitHub and docs; publish templates, run webinars/how‑tos, and use embedded demo videos and early case studies to drive viral sharing and low‑friction upgrades to Pro/Team GitHub, docs, FOSS blog, embedded demo.
- First 100: Add channel partnerships (Metabase agencies/resellers), list in integration/marketplaces, and run targeted outbound to companies using Metabase/Jupyter; offer pilot SOWs and fast SOC2/enterprise onboarding, with parallel self‑serve and short‑cycle sales playbooks bundling embed/admin features Embedded AI, pricing.
What is the rough total addressable market
Top-down context:
MinusX sits within BI/analytics software spend estimated around $34.8B to $72.1B in the near term, with the broader data & analytics software market at ~$175.17B Fortune BI, HG Insights, Gartner.
Bottom-up calculation:
Metabase reports 80,000+ organizations; assuming 2 analyst seats per org yields ~160k seats. At $49/user/month (~$588/year), 100% penetration is ~$/94M ARR, with 1–10% capture roughly ~$0.9M–$9.4M Metabase, pricing.
Assumptions:
- Average 2 analyst seats per Metabase org (within Metabase’s 1–3 range).
- Each eligible seat monetized at Pro pricing of $49/user/month.
- Capture scenarios (1–10%) applied to the Metabase beachhead; excludes Jupyter and embedded‑analytics expansion.
Who are some of their notable competitors
- Metabase (Metabot): Metabase’s built‑in Metabot answers natural‑language questions, generates/edits SQL, analyzes charts, and can be embedded—overlapping directly with MinusX’s Metabase use case docs.
- ThoughtSpot: Search‑driven analytics with automated insights (SpotIQ) and embedded AI/agent capabilities for product teams, competing on conversational analytics and in‑app experiences SpotIQ, embedded.
- Sigma Computing: Ask Sigma enables NLQ, charting, and spreadsheet‑style analytics with embedding; overlaps when non‑technical users want NLQ → charts within an existing stack Ask Sigma.
- Hex: Notebook‑first analytics with AI assistants (Notebook Agent, Threads) for SQL/Python and published apps—close to MinusX’s Jupyter use case Hex AI, docs.
- AnswerRocket: Conversational analytics and packaged AI assistants focused on enterprise and embedded insights, including automated explanations and root‑cause analysis guide.