France-based innovation challenge platform Agorize has secured €13m ($14.5m) in funding from investors including Sofiouest, an investment vehicle majority owned by media group Sipa-Ouest‑France, Journal Dunet has reported.
The round also featured Iris Capital and Capnamic Ventures, the venture capital firms that had provided $2.5m of series A funding for Agorize in 2014, as well as investment firm Creadev.
Founded in 2011, Agorize crowdsources information and data for companies by running innovation challenges such as hackathons for students, developers, startups and employees on their behalf.
The company plans to recruit up to 120 more people by the end of 2018, beefing up its sales, marketing and customer support teams, as well as hiring more developers and community managers.
Agorize also raised approximately $390,000 in seed funding from Bouygues Telecom Initiatives, the corporate venturing arm of telecommunications company Bouygues Telecom, in 2012.