Cork, Ireland — [March 4th, 2026] — Keelvar, the agentic sourcing platform for enterprise procurement teams, has been named in the 2026 Gartner® Market Guide™ for Sourcing Applications across two categories: Advanced Sourcing Optimization and Autonomous Sourcing.

Keelvar is the only representative vendor offering both Advanced Sourcing Optimization and Autonomous Sourcing, a combination that allows procurement teams to manage both complex, high-value sourcing decisions and high-volume, repeatable events on a single platform.

Why the combination matters

Most sourcing technology is built for one type of problem. Tools designed for optimization handle complexity — multiple variables, competing constraints, and large-scale scenario analysis. Tools designed for automation handle volume — repeatable events, faster cycle times, reduced manual work. Procurement teams that need both have historically needed two separate platforms.

Keelvar was built to do both. Our Sourcing Optimizer gives teams the ability to model complex award scenarios across thousands of line items, evaluate competing trade-offs in real time, and make defensible decisions on high-stakes spend. Autonomous Sourcing turns repeatable sourcing events into automated workflows – from event creation and supplier communication through to bid analysis and award – without prompting manual intervention at each step (unless human oversight is preferred!). 

Because both products share the same platform, teams can apply the right capability to the right event. Strategic categories get the depth they require. High-frequency categories run at scale without consuming team capacity.

Kai — the AI orchestrator

In 2025, Keelvar introduced Kai, an AI orchestrator agent that coordinates Keelvar's suite of specialized agents across the sourcing workflow. Kai works alongside purpose-built agents including the Optimal Close Agent, which uses machine learning to determine the best moment to close a bid event, and the Autonomous Rate Refresh Agent, which automatically goes to market when contracted rates expire or fall below defined benchmarks.

This is not a roadmap announcement. These capabilities are live and in use by Keelvar customers today.

Built for any category

Keelvar is category-agnostic by design. The platform supports spend categories from transport and logistics to direct materials, packaging, MRO, and services — across any industry. Customers including Coca-Cola, Maersk, and Mars use Keelvar to run sourcing events at scale, across categories, without rebuilding their approach for each spend type.

What this recognition means

Being named in the Gartner® Market Guide™ for Sourcing Applications 2026 reflects the position Keelvar holds in the market: a specialist sourcing platform with proven capability across both advanced sourcing optimization and autonomous sourcing. 

To learn more about Keelvar's sourcing platform or request a demonstration, visit keelvar.com.

Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner's Research & Advisory organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

Gartner® and Market Guide™ are trademarks of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.

‍