Chinese AI chipmaker Horizon endeavours to raise $700M to rival NVIDIA

AI chipmaker Horizon Robotics is seeking to raise $700 million in a new funding round.

Horizon is often seen as potentially becoming China’s equivalent of NVIDIA. The company is founded by Dr Kai Yu, a prominent industry figure with quite the credentials.

Yu led Baidu’s AI Research lab for three years, founded the Baidu Institute of Deep Learning, and launched the company’s autonomous driving business unit.

Furthermore, Yu has taught at Stanford...

22 December 2020 | China

State of European Tech: Investment in ‘deep tech’ like AI drops 13%

The latest State of European Tech report highlights that investment in “deep tech” like AI has dropped 13 percent this year.

Data from Dealroom was used for the State of European Tech report. Dealroom defines deep tech as 16 fields: Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Big Data, Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, Drones, Autonomous Driving, Blockchain, Nanotech, Robotics, Internet of Things, 3D Technology, Computer Vision, Connected Devices, Sensors Technology, and...

8 December 2020 | Europe

The White House is set to boost AI funding by 30 percent

A budget proposal from the White House would boost funding for AI by around 30 percent as the US aims to retain its technological supremacy.

Countries around the world are vastly increasing their budgets for AI, and with good reason. Just look at Gartner’s Hype Cycle released yesterday to see how important the technology is expected to be over the next decade.

Russian president Vladimir Putin famously said back in 2017 that the nation which leads in AI “will become...

19 August 2020 | Adoption

Babylon Health’s GP at Hand causes £21.6m funding gap

Babylon Health's AI-powered healthcare service GP at Hand has caused a funding gap in excess of £21 million just as further cuts are being made.

Health secretary Matt Hancock has championed GP at Hand since 2017. The digital service has come into question for providing unsafe recommendations, and for taking money away from surgeries already struggling with cuts.

The service has operated through the Hammersmith and Fulham Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) across London....

24 May 2019 | Healthcare

Almost half of Europe’s AI startups have no actual AI

A new report highlights many of Europe’s AI startups appear to be cashing in on the hype and have no actual AI to speak of.

The fact you can add ‘AI’, ‘IoT’, or ‘blockchain’ to your company name/description and it will skyrocket your valuation has become something of a running joke in the industry. Shares in Long Island Iced Tea, for example, infamously shot up almost 200 percent after changing its parent company name to ‘Long Blockchain Corp.’

European...

5 March 2019 | Europe

Most-funded AI startup SenseTime wants another $2bn

Not content with being the world’s most-funded AI startup, Chinese facial recognition darling SenseTime is preparing a $2 billion financing round.

SenseTime raised more than $1.2 billion last year; including a round announced in May that valued it at more than $4.5 billion.

According to Bloomberg sources, the company is aiming for $2 billion more funding but the information is private. The sources claim investor Alibaba is working on the...

11 January 2019 | China