Two corporate venturing initiatives, both launched today, indicated how the space is continuing to expand as established companies look to start-ups to help them solve existing problems and build their businesses through innovation.
US-based cloud computing software producer Salesforce.com plans to support start-up companies through its Salesforce1 Fund, announced by the company earlier today, in a bid to widen its strategic investments.
The $100m fund is the first dedicated fund from Salesforce Ventures, Salesforce’s corporate venturing arm, and will target start-ups developing apps and connected products that extend the capabilities of Salesforce1, the company’s app building platform.
Initial investments from the fund have been in businesses including e-signature company DocuSign, which raised an $85m round in March, sales acceleration platform InsideSales.com, Salesforce interface company Skuid and I.am+, the app developed by musician Will.I.Am that can turn an iPhone into a digital camera.
John Somorjai, executive vice president of corporate development and strategy for Salesforce, said: “The Salesforce1 Fund will empower the most innovative start-ups in the industry to develop transformative technologies for Salesforce.com’s customer platform.
“Our commitment to helping the next generation of start-ups grow and give back to their communities has never been stronger.”
UK-based alcoholic drinks business Diageo meanwhile announced its own corporate venturing unit today. Diageo Technology Ventures will seek to invest up to $100,000 a time in start-ups.
Diageo will fund businesses developing technology enabling users to drink more responsibly, particularly through digital platforms already used by social drinkers, as well as those working on technology that can help retailers and distributors stop retail theft.
The almost simultaneous launch of the new corporate funds comes as research conducted by Global Corporate Venturing indicates that of approximately 1,125 corporate venturing units active today, roughly half had been formed since the beginning of 2009, with corporates increasingly eager to look outwards for innovation.
The contrasting aims of a cloud-based company like Salesforce, which is aiming to develop its business by encouraging external development of technology that can facilitate it, and a traditional product maker like Diageo, which is funding technology that can help solve an issue that has existed for centuries, show that start-ups can help unlock solutions for businesses regardless of their field.