The acquisition will boost Salesforce’s analytics and data visualisation capabilities.

Founded in 2003, Tableau’s self-service data visualisation platform is used by around 86,000 business customers, including Charles Schwab, Verizon and Schneider Electric.

Tableau will operate independently under its own brand following the conclusion of the deal, while Tableau chief executive Adam Selipsky and its current leadership team will continue to lead the company at its current headquarters in Seattle.

Keith Block, co-chief executive, Salesforce, said: “Data is the foundation of every digital transformation, and the addition of Tableau will accelerate our ability to deliver customer success by enabling a unified and powerful view across all of a customer’s data.”

Adam Selipsky, president and chief executive, Tableau, said the acquisition would allow “millions more people to discover actionable insights across their organisations”.

The boards of directors of both companies have approved the transaction, which is expected to conclude during the third quarter of 2019, subject to closing conditions.

The deal will see each share of Tableau Class A and Class B common stock being exchanged for 1.103 shares of Salesforce common stock, representing an enterprise value of $15.7bn.