companyGenealogy Technology / Consumer GenomicsIsrael

MyHeritage

Global genealogy platform offering family history discovery, DNA testing, and AI-powered photo tools.

MyHeritage is a genealogy technology company founded in 2003 by Gilad Japhet and headquartered in Yehud, Israel. It describes itself as "the leading global discovery platform for exploring family history," offering users access to a database of 38.6 billion historical records, at-home DNA tests for ethnic origins and relative matching, and AI-powered photo tools including the Deep Nostalgia™ animated-photo feature launched in 2021.

The company pursued aggressive growth through acquisitions — including Kindo (UK), OSN Group (Germany), Bliscy.pl (Poland), and FamilyLink — reaching 60 million users and 900 million profiles by the end of 2011, with availability in 38 languages. In total, MyHeritage has raised $49M in funding over two rounds from 12 investors and has completed 8 acquisitions.

Since February 2021, MyHeritage has been owned by Francisco Partners, a San Francisco-based private equity firm specialising in technology investments. Founder Gilad Japhet retained his role as CEO following the acquisition. The company employs between 201 and 500 people as of mid-2024.

As a data-rich platform built around historical records, DNA analysis, and AI image processing, MyHeritage operates at the intersection of genealogy, consumer genomics, and applied AI — making it highly relevant to innovations in any of those domains.

Ideas that could help MyHeritage

Advance Data Directive (Digital Will) Service
A consumer platform that lets individuals create legally binding, notarized instructions specifying what happens to their AI avatars, digital twins, and biometric data after death — who can use them, who can delete them, and on what terms.
Why it helps: MyHeritage already animates and voice-clones deceased relatives from photos; a data directive service would let users consent in advance and enable the company to operate with clear legal standing.