US-based task automation software provider UiPath secured $153m yesterday in a series B round featuring CapitalG, a subsidiary of internet and technology group Alphabet, at a $1.1bn valuation.
The round was led by Accel and included fellow venture capital firms Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Credo Ventures and Earlybird, the latter investing through its Digital East Fund, as well as seed-stage VC fund Seedcamp.
UiPath has built a robotic process automation platform (RPA) that uses software bots to automate repetitive processes to help ensure enterprises and government agencies maintain productivity and comply with regulations.
The company will put the funding into product development, focusing on technologies that incorporate artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) algorithms into digital business operations. It will be supported by technical advisors from Alphabet subsidiary Google.
The round will also precede the opening of offices in the cities of Amsterdam, Houston, Munich, Paris, Seoul and Washington DC. UiPath is already present in 14 countries.
Daniel Dines, UiPath’s co-founder and CEO, said: “RPA is proving to be an unrivalled technology for driving real digital transformation and delivering better business outcomes incredibly fast. With our tremendous growth in 2017, it is now clear that every organisation in the world can benefit significantly from RPA.
“With the substantial commitment today by Accel, CapitalG and Kleiner Perkins, we are deepening our resolve to accelerate the delivery of AI through the UiPath platform, helping organisations and workers quickly become more sophisticated in everything they do.”
UiPath was founded in Romania in 2012 and first raised funding from Earlybird, Seedcamp and Credo Ventures in a $1.6m seed round in 2016, according to TechCrunch. Accel led the company’s $30m series A round in April 2017.