Japan edge computing specialist gets $7.8m

Edge computing is seen as a significant trend in artificial intelligence (AI) and internet-of-things (IoT) applications. The technology allows devices such as mobile phones, drones, cameras, robots, and virtual reality headsets to process data via on-site modules rather than in a cloud, which is said to improve power management and performance metrics around latency and bandwidth.

Idein’s core project is an IoT platform service called Actcast that connects information about the physical world collected by edge devices to the internet. The company says its technology reduces the cost of data transfer and decreases the risk of confidential information being leaked. The fresh capital will support Actcast development and acquiring new staff.

“It is very rare to find deep tech start-ups, like Idein, that are not only highly technical but also have had a clear product concept since inception,” Naoki Kamimaeda, a partner at Global Brain, said in a statement. “Expectations from large overseas companies for Actcast are high, and we are pleased that Idein is making steady progress towards the global core platform in the AIoT era.”

Global Brain was joined in the round by DG Daiwa Ventures, Hakuodo DY Ventures, Sony Financial Ventures, and Innovation Growth Ventures, a division of Sony Innovation Fund. “We believe that edge computing is a significantly crucial elemental technology as IoT is rapidly progressing in various situations, such as smart cities and connected cars,” added Masahito Okuma, a director at DG Daiwa.

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• Topics
• North Asia
• Technology
• Early-stage
• Japan
• Global Brain Corporation
• artificial intelligence