US-based customer service software producer Directly raised $20m yesterday from investors including financial services firm AvidBank, Samsung Next and M12, subsidiaries of consumer electronics manufacturer Samsung and software publisher Microsoft.
The round was led by Industry Ventures and also featured fellow venture capital firms Costanoa Ventures and True Ventures in addition to growth equity firm Northgate.
Directly’s platform automates the customer experience process, using artificial intelligence to study customer contact data, solve issues and give answers through a virtual agent. Microsoft and Samsung already both use the software themselves.
The round was announced alongside the company’s promotion of Mike de la Cruz from chief business officer to chief executive. Co-founder Antony Brydon will move from CEO to vice president in charge of the Directly platform.
M12 (then known as Microsoft Ventures) joined Costanoa Ventures and True Ventures to provide $20m in series B funding for Directly in 2018.
The latter two took part in a $10.8m series A round in 2015 with Tuesday Ventures (then CrunchFund) and Toba Capital that came after a $1.8m seed round two years earlier.
