Japan-based artificial intelligence (AI) technology developer AIQ has raised ¥1.1bn ($10.7m) in a series B round featuring internet-of-things data provider And Factory and marketing agency Hakuhodo DY Holdings’ Spicebox subsidiary.
The round included SMBC Venture Capital and Mizuho Capital, respective subsidiaries of banks Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and Mizuho Financial Group, in addition to Deep30, Hokkaido Venture Capital and unnamed financial firms and individuals.
Financial services firm Shoko Chukin Bank supplied debt financing in the round, which lifted the company’s total funding to more than $12.5m since it was founded in 2017.
AIQ has developed AI-powered marketing tools including social media classification product AILink and AISight, which analyses hashtags and comments in popular posts. The technology produces data on online profiles and performs analytics for marketing purposes.
The company had previously received $1.85m from multiple financial institutions and corporate investors including And Factory in July 2019.
