Tiger Global, Coatue lead Series B for Singapore's AI Rudder
Tiger Global Management and Coatue Management have led a USD 50m Series B round for Singapore-based voice artificial intelligence start-up AI Rudder.
Singapore multi-asset investor First Plus, Cathay Capital affiliate Cathay Innovation, and VenturesLab, a China-based incubator set up by Tim Draper, also came in as new investors. Sequoia Capital India, Huashan Capital, and WestSummit Capital re-upped.
Sequoia India and WestSummit backed a USD 10m Series A last year alongside Sequoia China, ZhenFund, IMO Ventures, and Shanghai Xiaomiao Langcheng Investment Management. ZhenFund and IMO provided seed funding in mid-2020.
Founded in China in 2019 as Saiduo Intelligence, AI Rudder develops advanced voice AI technology to help businesses with B2C communication challenges across a range of industries, including banking and finance and e-commerce. More than 200 companies use the platform globally with a view to improving omnichannel customer experiences as well as profits, efficiency, and scalability.
AI Rudder claims to have experienced 400% year-on-year growth in 2021 on the back of advancements in deep learning technology and pandemic-driven demand for responsive customer service. During the same period, annual recurring revenue was said to have increased 3x due to a growing client roster, which penetrates markets as disparate as Mexico, Kenya, and Australia.
"We have been looking to invest in companies using AI to reimagine the customer experience. Through its global first approach and rapidly growing TAM [total addressable market], AI Rudder's position within the rapidly growing global conversational AI marketplace fit squarely into our thesis,” Nicolas du Cray, a partner at Cathay, said in a statement.
“Once we discovered that a number of our portfolio companies rely heavily on their technology to deliver game-changing customer experiences, we had to back the company.”
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