Nepedia
Back to Discover
Advanced Reader
💻

Intuit

technology Maturity 11-13 war conflict Next article →

This article covers sensitive topics: war_conflict. Parents can manage visibility in Parental Controls.

Intuit Inc. is a major American multinational corporation. It specializes in creating software for financial management. The company is headquartered in Mountain View, California. It is currently led by CEO Sasan Goodarzi. Most of the company's revenue comes from the United States. More than 95% of its earnings originate there. Intuit is a significant player in the global economy. It is listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange. It is also part of the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 indices.

The company operates through several specialized software platforms. TurboTax is a widely used application for tax preparation. It offers various versions like Basic, Standard, and Premier. QuickBooks is designed for small business accounting and financial management. QuickBooks Online provides web-based tools for reviewing business data. Credit Karma is a service used for credit monitoring and personal finance. Mailchimp is an email marketing platform. The company also offers the Intuit Enterprise Suite for mid-market businesses. These tools help individuals and companies manage complex money tasks.

Intuit provides professional-grade tools for accounting experts. These are organized into the Intuit Professional Tax Software portfolio. ProConnect Tax Online is a cloud-based platform for tax advisors. It supports over 5,700 tax forms and uses error diagnostics. Lacerte Tax is a desktop-based software for large accounting firms. It was acquired in 1998 for approximately $400 million. Lacerte handles complex returns and features 25,000 error-checking diagnostics. ProSeries Tax is another desktop option for smaller practices. It offers a balance of functionality and cost for individual practitioners.

The history of Intuit began in 1983. Scott Cook and Tom Proulx founded the company in Palo Alto, California. Cook developed his idea while working at Procter & Gamble. He realized personal computers could replace paper-and-pencil accounting. Cook met Proulx at Stanford University to begin the venture. Their first product was Quicken, coded in BASIC and Pascal. In 1991, Intuit used a $15 rebate to compete with Microsoft. On March 12, 1993, the company went public on the NASDAQ. This IPO provided funds to acquire Chipsoft in San Diego.

Intuit has experienced significant financial growth over the decades. In 1994, the company's market capitalization reached $2 billion. Microsoft attempted to buy the company that year. However, the United States Department of Justice sued to block it. By May 2018, Intuit had more than $5 billion in annual revenue. Its market capitalization reached about $50 billion at that time. In July 2024, the company announced a major shift in resources. It will lay off 1,800 employees, which is 10% of its workforce. This move aims to focus on generative AI initiatives.

The company has also faced legal challenges regarding its business practices. In 2019, investigations by ProPublica highlighted issues with TurboTax. The reports found that Intuit steered users toward paid services. They used tactics like search engine delisting and misleading discounts. These actions targeted specific groups, including members of the military. The Senate and New York State investigators reached similar conclusions. They described some practices as unfair and abusive. In 2022, Intuit agreed to a $141 million settlement over misleading advertisements.

Intuit also maintains a strong presence in international markets. Intuit Canada is a major subsidiary of the company. It was formed through the 1993 acquisition of a Canadian developer. This developer had created WINTAX, Canada's first Windows-based tax software. WINTAX later became QuickTax and eventually TurboTax. Today, Intuit Canada serves as a hub for international development. It produces localized versions of Quicken and QuickBooks for Canadian users. This demonstrates how the company adapts its technology for different countries.

601 words

Where will your curiosity go next?

Keep exploring at your chosen reading level.

More to explore

🔬 Go deeper

More advanced topics to explore

🪜 Step back

Simpler topics to build understanding

What is Nepedia?

A free, ad-free encyclopedia for children. Every article is written at five reading levels, so the same page works for a five-year-old and a fifteen-year-old — use the level switcher above to see this one change. No account needed to read.