Roobo, a China-based consumer robotics technology developer backed by speech and language software provider iFlytek, has attracted RMB350m ($53.8m) in series B capital from Seven Seas Partners, China Money Network reported today.
Seven Seas Partners was founded by Jeff Xiong, former chief technology officer of internet company Tencent. Xiong will become chairman of Roobo following the investment, which values Roobo at close to $1bn.
Founded in 2014, Roobo has developed a range of artificial intelligence (AI) service robots, such as Pudding, an education robot for children, Dongy, a pet companion that includes facial and speech recognition, and Jelly, a commercial robot for hospitals, restaurants and banks.
The money will go towards recruitment, product upgrades and R&D as the company prepares to shift its focus onto the development of artificial intelligence technology in future, including chips, modules, operating systems, content and cloud services.
Roobo previously obtained $100m in a series A round provided by iFlyTek in September 2016.
Jeff Xiong said: “AI is another technology revolution after the internet. Robots will be the next information platform after personal computers and smartphones. So far, Roobo is the startup with the most complete capabilities in both AI software and hardware.”