(Adds details from conference call, CEO comment, more context)
By Sarah McBride and Kshitiz Goliya
May 18 (Reuters) - Salesforce.com Inc, a marketing-and-sales software provider for 17 years, may be joining the ranks of the technology old-guard, but the 27 percent first-quarter revenue growth it posted on Wednesday still showed some startup zip.
The company also provided a rosy outlook, raising its full-year revenue forecast and predicting that technology like artificial intelligence would drive future growth.
Shares of Salesforce, seen as a barometer for the cloud-computing sector, rose 5.9 percent in after-hours trading. Cloud-delivered software, provided online on a subscription basis, has gained popularity with businesses due to its flexibility and cost benefits.
Salesforce, founded in 1999, has won market share from more traditional software providers such as Oracle Corp and SAP AG, Chief Executive Marc Benioff reminded analysts on a conference call after the company reported its earnings.
"One of the reasons we're doing so well is Oracle and SAP are doing so poorly in the cloud," said Benioff, who is known for taking potshots at the competition.
Growth at Oracle, with more than five times the revenue of Salesforce last year, had shrunk in the low single digits in each of the last four quarters. SAP, with more than three times the revenue of Salesforce, has grown in recent quarters, but at a much slower pace than Salesforce.
Salesforce has worked to stay abreast of the latest technologies, including the Internet of Things, or the network of data-generating sensors used by many businesses. Salesforce is carving out a role organizing that data for marketing and sales.
On Wednesday, Benioff made clear his belief that related technologies, including artificial intelligence, would drive future growth at Salesforce.
"What I see is an AI first world," said Benioff. "And for every customer ... to be able to get a whole another generation of productivity out of artificial intelligence, machine learning and deep learning."
For now, growth is coming from new or expanded contracts at businesses ranging from young companies like ride-service Uber to traditional ones like financial-services provider New York Life. A handful of outsized deals powered the growth, Salesforce executives said on the call.
For the full year, Salesforce said it expected revenue of $8.16 billion to $8.20 billion and adjusted profit of $1.00 to $1.02 per share.
The company had previously forecast revenue of $8.08 billion to $8.12 billion and profit of 99 cents to $1.01 per share for the period.