BP Ventures, the corporate venture capital vehicle for oil and gas company BP, invested $20m in US-based artificial intelligence (AI) technology developer Beyond Limits yesterday.
Beyond Limits uses technology developed at university Caltech and its Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and funded by Nasa and the US Department of Defense, to develop AI and cognitive computing products for use in the industrial and enterprise sectors.
The company’s technology could hypothetically be used by BP to inform decision making and risk management for activities such as the detection and development of reservoirs, and the production and refinement of crude oil.
BP Ventures managing director Meghan Sharp will join Beyond Limits’ board of directors in conjunction with the round.
Sharp said: “BP Ventures is excited to help Beyond Limits grow into new verticals, as we bring forward the pioneering work they have developed with the space program to our industry and throughout our businesses.
“Our investment in Beyond Limits is an example of BP’s ongoing support of entrepreneurs and innovators not only inside the traditional world of oil and gas but those looking toward a new energy future.”
Beyond Limits, which was launched in 2012, has not publicly disclosed any earlier funding.