TMI Holding Corporation, a corporate venturing vehicle set up by the US venture capital firm WI Harper Group, Kaifu Lee, head of Innovation Works —China’s largest foreign owned Venture Capital Fund— and ITRI, a Taiwan nonprofit R&D organization engaging in applied research and technical services, has invested in three Taiwan start-ups. Founded in 2012, TMI makes early stage investments in companies developing companies in the mobile, internet and e-commerce sectors.
The three seed round investments include Citiesocial, a Taiwan-based startup that operates Citiesocial.com, an ‘online mall’ focused on exclusive gourmet and design goods for purchase that also engages users through exclusive content related to gourmet and design culture. Launched in October 2011, Citiesocial currently has 100,000+ members, 100+ brand partners, and many well-known corporate partners and celebrity users.
TMI said that it believes that combining the company with TMI’s extensive global network and resources, Citiesocial will be able to accelerate its growth and value.
Target company, Driving Curve, is a Taiwan-based maker of the iOS app ”Driving Curve”, which uses GPS to capture a user’s speed and fuel efficiency. The APP has reached 20,000+ downloads a month after its launch and is a favorite application in Taiwan and France.
“TMI has had a keen interest in apps related to the auto sector. Driving Curve has an exceptional product and stylish UI design. Most importantly, the team is top-notch: focused, passionate and ambitious. We believe our cooperation has unlimited potential,” said Lucas Wang, chief executive officer and Partner of TMI.
Peeridea, the third of the investments, has not had a formal description of what the company entails, only that its founder, Weiting Liu, a serial entrepreneur and two-time Y Combinator alum, will be heading it up. TMI stated in a press release that his first startup was SocialPicks, a pioneer in the social finance space, backed by Silicon Valley venture capital firms and acquired in 2009. He is also one of the early app developers to gain traction on the Facebook platform (with 10m+ app installs). With Weiting’s past experience, TMI is looking forward to being involved in his third startup, which will be described in more detail in the future.
Other TMI investments made this year includes an undisclosed series A round investment in China-based game software company, Roam & Wander. The company’s launch title, Sticker Games, is a #1-ranked game for iPad, and the first game in the App Store that rewards kids for their achievements with real stickers delivered right to their door.