Week Ending 11.25.18
ZETA GLOBAL MAKES OFFER FOR VISTO
AEYE RAISES USD 40M FROM TAIWAN
SINGAPORE’S TEMASEK CONSIDERS AI
LITELINK HIRES AI HEAD
AND MORE ↓
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MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS
Zeta Global, the New York City-based marketing software company using AI, has made an offer for bankrupt advertising firm Visto. A deal, with Zeto or other interested parties, is expected by January next year.
Medtronic, the Dublin, Ireland-based medical technology company, said it is acquiring Nutrino Health, in part, for its AI technology.
FILINGS
Bionik Laboratories, the Toronto, Ontario-based company developing treatments for neurological diseases with AI and robotics, refiled for a USD 10m Nasdaq uplist. Earlier the company had also announced a 1-for-150 reverse stock split.
FUNDING
AEye, the Pleasanton, California-based company developing autonomous driving technology, said it raised USD 40m in a Series B led by Taiwan government backed Taiwania Capital. The venture capital arms of French aircraft maker Airbus and US computer chip maker Intel also participated.
The company hired Aravind Ratnam in August as vice president of product management. Ratnam headed project management at Wind River, part of semiconductor maker Intel’s Internet of Things unit. In July it hired Nate Ramanathan as vice president of operations from Benchmark, the electronics contract manufacturer.
ClearDATA, the Austin, Texas-based company using AI in healthcare data processing, said it raised USD 26m from investors including the insurance company Humana.
Botkeeper, the Boston, Massachusetts-based bookkeeping app developer using AI, said it raised USD 18m in a Series A led by Greycroft and Google’s AI-focused fund Gradient Ventures.
Urbanimmersive, the Laval, Canada-based real estate marketing company using AI, said it raised USD 125,000 from the private placement of 1m units at USD 0.13 each.
Aurora Mobile, the Shenzhen, China-based company using AI for marketing, said it plans a USD 10m share buyback over the next six months.
The company’s shares are down 23% since it raised a less-than-planned USD 77m in an initial public offering of 9.1 million ADS at USD 8.50 each, the lowest end of the marketed range, in July on the Nasdaq. The company had originally planned to sell 12m ADS.
Nuance Communication, the Burlington, Massachusetts company developing AI language technology, said it plans to spinoff its automotive software business as a publicly traded company.
The company hired Mark Sherwood as chief information officer in July from Semantec. Nuance hired a new CEO in April and reshuffled its board in June.
Temasek, the Singaporean sovereign wealth fund, is creating AI and blockchain ‘exploration pods’, according to a Bloomberg report.
Other deals include Quantum Machines
LEGAL & REGULATORY
The US government is considering export limits on AI and robotics, according to a Department of Commerce statement here. A public comment period ends December 19.
The move may actually help China acquire AI technology, according to a report from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
PEOPLE
JLL, the Chicago, Illinois-based real estate and investment management services firm, said it hired former IBM executive Sanjay Rishi as CEO for Americas corporate solutions. In October the company said it is acquiring ValuD Consulting to deepen its involvement with AI and predictive analytics.
AntWorks, the Palo Alto, California-based AI services firm, said it hired Emma Beaumont as chief marketing officer. She joins from Shared Services & Outsourcing Network, the events, data and information shop for the services industry, where she was global managing director.
In August the company raised USD 15m in a Series A from Japanese venture capital fund SBI.
Boxever, the Dublin, Ireland-based marketing platform using AI, said it hired Lorcan Malone as COO. He held the same position at Swiftpage, the marketing company.
LiteLink Technologies, the Vancouver, Canada-based business software developer, said it hired former Ericsson executive Shoukri Kattan as head of AI.
DATA
No data sets we track were released.