Matt Whitteker co-founded Assent in Ottawa in 2005 with Rob Imbeault. The company began as a small compliance software firm and later moved into supply chain compliance for manufacturers.
Whitteker is a boxing enthusiast. He organised the Fight for the Cure charity boxing matches. At an Ottawa gym he met Andrew Waitman, a former Pythian chief executive who had taken up boxing in his forties.
Waitman left Pythian in August 2014. Whitteker invited him to look at Assent, at first as a volunteer. Waitman became CEO that year and led the company until May 2025, when he became executive chairman.
Assent grew into a unicorn. In early 2022 it raised US$350m led by Vista Equity Partners. Annual recurring revenue passed US$100m in June 2024. The Ottawa office has a full-size boxing ring used for all-hands meetings.