US-based voice intelligence technology developer SoundHound raised $100m from a range of corporate investors yesterday, at a valuation of more than $1bn according to Business Insider.
The round included internet group Tencent, automotive manufacturers Daimler and Hyundai Motor Company, appliance producer Midea Group and telecommunications firm Orange, and increased the company’s overall funding to $215m.
SoundHound is the creator of Houndify, a voice-based artificial intelligence platform that can be used to add a conversational interface to apps and electronics products. The technology incorporates speech recognition, natural language understanding, developer tools and knowledge graphs.
The funding will support international expansion, and will be used to open new offices in China, France and Germany. SoundHound also intends to expand in existing markets such as the US, Japan and South Korea.
Sajjad Khan, Daimler’s vice-president of digital vehicle and mobility, said: “We believe that connectivity in vehicles will become a part of everyday life in the near future and it will soon be possible to control entertainment, navigation and real-time driving information by voice command.
“Houndify provides a solution to make these interactions natural, fast and accurate – critical components for allowing drivers to concentrate fully on the road.”
Chengmao Xu, vice-president of Midea’s corporate research centre, added: “Our investment will not only help advance SoundHound’s vision of collective AI, but also drive international expansion of Houndify, particularly to the greater China market.”
SoundHound last raised cash in a $75m round in January 2017 backed by insurance firm Sompo Japan Nipponkoa and Samsung Catalyst Fund, Nvidia GPU Ventures and RSI Fund I, subsidiaries of electronics producer Samsung, graphics chipmaker Nvidia and human resources provider Recruit.
Financial services firm Nomura Holdings also took part in the round, along with SharesPost, MKann, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and existing backers Global Catalyst Partners, Walden Venture Capital and TransLink Capital.