US-based emotion recognition software developer Affectiva has secured around $32m to date in three corporate-backed venture capital rounds. Spun out of interdisciplinary research centre MIT Media Lab in 2009, Affectiva is building software that can sense and analyse facial expressions.
Affectiva has beefed up its research team with machine learning, computer vision and emotion science experts to expand globally. The company collected $14m in funding from investors including IT services provider CAC Holdings and video game producers Bandai Namco and Sega Sammy Holdings in May 2016.
Before that, in 2012, Affectiva raised a $12m series C round featuring Kantar, the consumer insight division of UK-based communications company WPP, which also led a $5.7m series B round in 2011, when Kantar invested along with private equity firm Myrian Capital. Companies using Affectiva’s software and analysis include retail technology company Cloverleaf.
The biggest amount raised in corporate-backed venture capital rounds to date involves China-based face recognition technology provider Megvii Technology, also known as Face Plus Plus. Founded in 2012, Face Plus Plus has built a face detection application programming interface that it makes freely available to developers and enterprises. The software uses computer vision and data-mining technology to recognise and analyse faces.
Face Plus Plus customers include China-based e-commerce group Alibaba’s financial services affiliate Ant Financial, which employs the technology to allow users to log into accounts using a facial image. Face Plus Plus is looking to expand into the smart cities and robotics sectors.
Over the past two years the company has raised a total of $145m in three corporate-backed rounds. The company received $100m in a series C round backed by investors including contract manufacturer Foxconn Technology Group and completed a $25m B-plus round in May 2015 that was backed by conglomerate Legend Holdings.
Face Plus Plus closed a $22m series B round featuring VC firms Qiming Venture Partners and Sinovation Ventures in 2014, a year after completing a series A round of undisclosed size that was also backed by Sinovation Ventures.
Given the strong investor demand for emotion and face recognition technology providers, it is no surprise that several sales or public offerings have resulted.
China-based photo retouching app developer Meitu raised $629m when it listed in Hong Kong in last December, providing an exit to corporate investors such as social media platform Sina Weibo and Foxconn. Founded in 2008, Meitu has built a face detection app enabling users to retouch, edit and add filters to photos for social media use. The company also moved into smartphone production.
In 2012, US-based social media platform Facebook acquired Face.com, a personal identification software company headquartered in Israel, allowing Russia-based search engine Yandex to exit. The terms of the acquisition were undisclosed, but news provider TechCrunch reported that Facebook had paid between $55m and $60m in cash and stock. Facebook has since added to its capabilities in this sector, buying US-based face recognition software developer FacioMetrics for an undisclosed sum last November.
Internet technology company Google snapped up Ukraine-based face recognition company Viewdle in 2012, providing an exit for investors such as Best Buy Capital, the corporate venturing unit of the US-based retailer, Blackberry Partners Fund, a mobile apps-focused investment vehicle backed by phone maker Research in Motion, and telecoms equipment manufacturer Qualcomm. While the final purchase price was not revealed, multiple news sources estimated that Google paid between $30m and $45m.
Emotient, a developer of technology to identify facial expressions, was acquired by computing company Apple in January 2016, enabling Intel Capital, the corporate venturing arm of semiconductor technology manufacturer Intel, to exit. Founded in 2012, Emotient’s software is intended to help companies improve customer engagement by translating expressions into market information.
