May 18, 2018
In yet another funding round, Intel Capital has invested in twelve of the Chinese tech startups that it says “will shape the future of computing over the next decade”
The announcement of the investment was made during the 2018 Intel Capital Global Summit that took place last week in California. This funding has raised the company’s YTD investment to over $115 million and has led it to reach its Intel Capital Diversity Initiative goal, of investing $125 million in diverse startups that are run by underrepresented communities, which means it is well ahead of its two and a half year schedule.
Regarding this, the company’s president, Wendell Brooks has said, “More than 10 percent of our entire portfolio is now led by entrepreneurs from these communities, which we believe is an essential part of making the tech industry more inclusive for everyone’s benefit”
Investing in the Future
The major investments made by the company were with the startups using industry major driving technologies like IoT, Cloud, AI, and silicon.
Whereas the AI startups that the company has made investments in are Avaamo, Fictiv, Gamalon, Reconova, and Syntiant. These startups are working on varied grounds of artificial intelligence, innovating with it to create more efficient solutions to the prevalent problems. Avaamo specialises in creating enterprise conversational interfaces using the algorithms of deep learning, whereas, Fictiv is primarily focusing on optimizing the workflow in manufacturing industries. Similarly, Gamalaton specialises in machine learning platforms, that are more accurate and quick at learning free-form data from different domains. Reconova’s leading in AI-based visual perception solutions and Syntiant in neural decision processors.
For Cloud and IoT, the company has funded Alauda- container-based cloud services provider for enterprise solutions, CloudGenix- an SD-WAN leader, Espressif Systems- producer of all in one SoCs, and VenueNext- creator of the smart venue platform that connects separate and individual operations in the hospitality industry.
Another major funding from the company goes to the startups like LynceanTechnologies, Movellus, and SiFive that are working on reducing the scale of machineries, replacing custom analog designs with digital designs, and manufacturing market-ready processor RISC-V architecture.
It is evident that the company has chosen its investments wisely while also working out on its social goals. These companies are indeed working on the solutions that the industry is in the most need of right now, and their requirements will not cease in the foreseeable future either. This is why Brooks’ statement sounds completely accurate, “We are planting seeds, that will grow for decades.”
As well as these leading technologies, the company has also announced its collaboration with NBA to innovate in the areas of sports and entertainment. They have named the multiyear initiative as “NBA + Intel Capital Emerging Technology Initiative” and will be funding through it to bring tech-led disruption in the aforementioned industries.
To get more information on the varied investments the company has made, details of the invested startups, and other particulars of the event, please refer to the official press room of the company, the hyperlink of which is given below.
Resources:
https://www.dealstreetasia.com/stories/intel-capital-china-investments-97493/
https://newsroom.intel.com/news-releases/intel-capital-global-summit-new-investments-tech-startups/
