Ai Palette receives USD 4 million investment from Tin Men Capital
Ai Palette, a Singapore-headquartered technology startup specializing in using artificial intelligence and machine learning to enable consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies in product creation, has received a USD 4 million investment from Tin Men Capital, bringing the funds raised in its Series A1 funding round to a total of USD 5.8 million. Ai Palette also has offices in the US and India.
According to the startup, its platform enables real-time identification of emerging consumer trends with contextual understanding, enabling it to generate and screen product ideas within minutes, thereby improving the costs and efficiency associated with product development. The platform taps into Ai Palette’s patented technology, which it claims to leverage 61 billion data points collated from over 150 data sources using a natural language processing (NLP) algorithm that can comprehend 18 different languages.
“[Ai Palette’s] solutions materially shorten product development timing for the CPG industry by as much as six months. The unique application of generative AI also removes bias while enabling enterprise clients to drastically improve success rate of product development and maximize revenue through speed to market,” said Jeremy Tan, co-founder of Tin Men Capital.
Rukita secures USD 15 million in Series B1 round
Rukita, a company focused on providing affordable rental options in Indonesia, has secured USD 15 million in a Series B1 funding round after recently turning EBITDA positive. Among the backers for the latest round include new investors MPower Partners, BNI Ventures, and Openspace Ventures.
Rukita aims to use the capital to continue developing its technology, expand its suite of services, and attract talent, among others. —Tech in Asia
Openspace Ventures leads USD 2.6 million investment in Thryve.Earth
Thryve.Earth, a nature-based carbon project developer, has raised USD 2.6 million in a funding round led by Openspace Ventures, with participation from Capital Code and angel investors. The completion of this deal brings the total funding raised by the company to USD 3.4 million.
According to a statement by Openspace Ventures, the newly raised capital will be used to facilitate the development of tools to de-risk and streamline project assessment, as well as to design and implement projects. Thryve will also tap into the funds to grow its team and venture into new markets in Asia and Latin America.
“As the trajectory of finance accelerates towards a low-carbon economy, carbon markets are emerging as an inevitable cornerstone. The principles of verifiable high quality, the ability to adapt to evolving methodologies, and robust stakeholder engagement serve as pivotal differentiators. Thryve exemplifies these principles and are firmly establishing themselves as leaders in this space,” said Jaclyn Seow, director of ESG at Openspace Ventures.
Sunday amplifies presence in Southeast Asia with acquisition of Indonesian general insurer
Sunday Ins Holding (Sunday), a Southeast Asian insurtech group, has announced that it acquired a 99% stake in PT KSK Insurance Indonesia, a general insurance company based in the archipelagic nation, in January this year after obtaining approval from the local financial services authority.
Sunday first launched in Indonesia as a registered insurtech firm and licensed broker in 2022.
With this acquisition, Sunday is well-placed to further grow its presence in Indonesia, integrating with KSK to offer differentiated personal line products through both new and existing distribution channels.
Carro enters Hong Kong market following acquisition of Beyond Cars
Carro, an online marketplace for used cars, has announced its acquisition of Beyond Cars, one of the leading used car platforms in Hong Kong.
With Hong Kong under its belt following the completion of this deal, Carro is now present in a total of seven markets, including Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Japan , and Taiwan. —TechNode Global
Vietnam-based Quickom bags USD 1.5 million in VinaCapital-led seed round
Quickom, a Vietnam-based video conferencing communication provider, has bagged USD 1.5 million from a seed funding round led by VinaCapital Ventures, the tech investment vehicle of VinaCapital Group.
“Vietnam is quickly closing the gap in terms of technological advancement and the digital transformation of the economy is well underway. Quickom is a perfect example of one of the startups leading the way. Its solutions are innovative and advanced, addressing important current issues such as cybersecurity and data privacy as well as future cyberspace threats,” said Hoang Duc Trung, partner at VinaCapital Ventures.
Synnax secures USD 1 million in pre-seed round
Synnax, a credit intelligence company, has closed a USD 1 million pre-seed funding round. The round was led by No Limit Holdings and included participation from Edessa Capital, Kenetic Capital, Bitscale, Ryze Capital, MH Ventures, Hex Trust, Moonvault, GameFi Ventures, Typhon Ventures, Ausvic Capital, Drops Ventures, and Everstake Ventures.
This investment will enable Synnax to further develop its AI-driven credit intelligence platform, addressing the need for an unbiased credit rating standard across digital asset markets.
Singapore’s ABC Impact invests in London-headquartered Winnow
ABC Impact, a Singapore-based private equity fund, has announced that it invested in Winnow, a London-headquartered provider of AI-driven food waste reduction solutions. Winnow also has offices in Singapore, Chicago, Dubai, and Cluj-Napoca. The investor did not disclose the sum it invested in the company.
Winnow’s solutions are trained to recognize waste as they are disposed of, whether during preparation or from a customer’s plate. The automated process captures 100% of the waste stream to accurately identify and track where wastage occurs, enabling stakeholders to effectively drive significant waste reductions in a targeted manner.
“Asia is a key market for our solutions and has vast potential to further reduce its food waste, with Singapore, Japan, and Indonesia a particular focus for us. We look forward to working with ABC Impact to further enhance our world-leading AI capabilities and to bring greater profitability and sustainability to Asia’s kitchens,” said Marc Zornes, co-founder and CEO of Winnow.
Companies like Winnow play a critical role as the global push to reduce food waste continues to gain momentum globally. According to the United Nations, approximately 13% of food is presently lost between harvest and sale, with a total of about 17% of global food production wasted across households and commercial food operations.
Wagely banks USD 23 million in new funding
Wagely (stylized as “wagely”), an employee-focused financial wellness platform, has banked USD 23 million in a funding round comprising a mix of debt and equity financing. The equity portion of this deal was led by Capria Ventures alongside a significant contribution from an undisclosed private debt fund.
Wagely’s platform provides workers with the opportunity to optimize how they manage their money, allowing them to access their pay after each workday as an optional benefit. Users can also utilize the platform to track their salary and access financial literacy resources.
“The Wagely team has demonstrated excellent execution with impressive growth in providing a sustainable and win-win financial solution for underserved blue-collar workers and employers,” said Dave Richards, managing partner of Capria Ventures.
Rider Dome rides into new horizons with USD 2.3 million seed round
Rider Dome, a startup specializing in AI-driven safety solutions for motorcycles, has completed a USD 2.3 million seed funding round. The backers include Goldbell, the Radhi Rani Holdings Family Office, and undisclosed angel investors.
Recent deals you might have missed:
- SmartRetail, a provider of AI-powered retail intelligence solutions, has raised USD 12 million in a funding round from Kumpulan Modal Perdana (KMP), LMI Group, and MCP Group. SmartRetail will utilize the funds and resources from this round to drive its strategic global expansion, particularly targeting the Malaysian market. KMP will back the company’s plans of building and strengthening its Malaysian tech team to meet local market demands while also working closely with the startup’s Hong Kong team to facilitate a transfer of knowledge and expertise.
- Binar Academy, an Indonesia-based edutech company, has secured an undisclosed amount of funding from various investors including Blue7, JN Capital and Growth Advisory, Scala Group, DGS, MD Capital, and Jeremy Lin. The company plans to use the capital to reorganize and reach profitability by developing new products and services. —e27
- Imaginary Ones, a Web3 startup based in Singapore, has raised a fresh round of funding led by Cypher Capital. Participants in this round include Animoca Brands, ED3N Ventures, and MH Ventures. The startup did not disclose the stage and amount raised, but said that the round was oversubscribed. It plans to expand its Web3 services to cover gaming, content, and merchandise, aiming to capitalize on emerging trends beyond non-fungible tokens (NFTs). —Tech in Asia
- Zolo, a Singapore-based AI-powered B2B software company, has secured an undisclosed amount of pre-seed investment from Protege Ventures. Zolo addresses the challenges faced by food suppliers in processing text-based orders from messaging apps like WhatsApp, integrating order details into structured purchase orders to streamline the process and minimize errors. Other investors in Zolo include Antler, Gharage, and NTUitive. —e27
- Drigmo, a Singapore-based startup, has raised USD 1.25 million in a pre-seed funding round led by Forge Ventures, with participation from Sequoia’s Scout Fund, DST Global Partners, Temasek, as well as a slew of angel investors including the founders and CEOs of companies like Carro, Carousell, Tableall, and Locofy.ai. Drigmo is the developer of the Yolk.fm app, which aims to differentiate itself in the social media space by focusing on image-based interactions rather than text-based content. —Tech in Asia
- Refy, a green fintech firm, has secured a pre-seed investment of USD 525,000 from Wavemaker Impact. The capital will enable Refy to execute pilot projects it has secured, develop its technical platform, and assemble a specialized team with experience in green assets and industrial projects. —e27
- Fluid (also known as GoFluid.io), a Singapore-based B2B financing company, has raised USD 5.2M in an equity funding round led by Insignia Ventures Partners. Including USD 1.8 million of seed funding previously raised from Iterative and New Stack Ventures, Fluid has bagged USD 7 million to date. It aims to expand its product capabilities and onboard bigger suppliers across industries to its platform, addressing the complexities and risks associated with deferred payments in B2B transactions.
- ProCredit, a Philippines-based lender for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), has closed a USD 4.1 million pre-seed round led by Integra Partners. The round also saw participation from the Menardo Jimenez Family Office, M Venture Partners, Cento Ventures, Gobi Partners (Gobi-Core Philippine Fund), and several local angel investors.
- 1Long, a Vietnam-based fintech company, has secured USD 500,000 investment in a pre-seed funding round from Iterative, Monk’s Hill Ventures, R2VP, and Orionis Capital. The newly raised capital will be allocated toward technology development, partnerships with asset managers and financial institutions, and the expansion of its team.
- Komerce, an Indonesian provider of e-commerce solutions for local SMEs, has raised an undisclosed amount of seed funding from 500 Global. —Tech in Asia
- NativeX, a Vietnamese edtech startup, has announced that it secured a total of USD 4 million eight months following its official launch, having raised USD 1.5 million from angel investors through SAFE instruments in June 2023 before recently completing its seed round for an additional USD 2.5 million. The latest round was jointly led by Ansible Ventures and Blueprint Ventures, with the participation of Northstar Ventures and other investors.
Latest deals in China:
- Clouditera, a Beijing-based developer of AI-powered network security solutions, has secured an eight-figure RMB sum in an extended angel round of financing. The round was led by Everest, while YM Capital acted as the financial advisor. —36Kr
- Boya Poly, a Ningbo-based polyimides developer, has completed a Series A++ funding round, bagging an eight-figure RMB sum. The round was jointly led by Casstar and Lan Fund. —36Kr
- Zhongke Guneng, a Shanghai-based solid-state battery solutions provider, has recently raised close to RMB 100 million following the completion of an angel funding round. The round was led by Hermitage Capital, with participation from Kecheng Capital, Redpoint China Ventures, Pingling Group, and other investors. The funds will be used for production line construction and technology R&D. —36Kr
- Shanghai Liberty Global Import and Export, an international trade facilitator, has banked nearly RMB 100 million in a Series A+ round of financing led by the China-US Green Fund, Yueda Capital, and Yijun Capital, with ongoing support from Chengwei Capital and Jun Capital. Dialogue Capital acted as the exclusive financial advisor. The funds will be allocated toward product and technology R&D as well as talent acquisition. —36Kr
- Shenzhen Tong, a Shenzhen-based developer of integrated circuit (IC) cards, has raised an eight-figure RMB sum in a pre-Series A funding round led by Qingsong Fund, with participation from Integrity Capital Partners and existing shareholder K2VC. The funds will be used to expand the company’s production line and to develop new products. —36Kr
- Qianqiu Zhineng, a Shanghai-based provider of digital mental health therapies and solutions, has banked an eight-figure RMB sum in an angel funding round led by Ruizi Venture Capital. Zhonglan Kechuang took part as the long-term financial advisor. The capital will be directed toward product development and market expansion. —36Kr
- Qinalloy, a Jiangsu-registered advanced alloy manufacturer, has recently completed a Series C funding round, securing over RMB 200 million. The round was led by Hangfa Fund, with participation from State Power Investment Corporation (SPIC), SCGC, Guoding Capital, CSC Financial, Tengye Ventures, and BCT Capital. Taihe Capital was appointed as the long-term financial advisor. The funds will be used for R&D center construction, capacity expansion, market development, and university cooperation. —36Kr
- Huaxin Energy, a Hunan-registered solid-state battery company, has received an eight-figure RMB sum of investment following the completion of an angel round of financing. The round was led by Oriental Fortune Capital and Lingli Weichuang, and will provide Huaxin with the funds to construct its laboratory and develop products. —36Kr
- Janaenergy Technology, a Shenzhen-registered producer of sodium-ion battery materials and systems, has completed a Series A funding round, raising a nine-figure RMB sum. The round was led by Zigong Hi-tech State-owned Capital Investment Management Group, with participation from Chaowei Group and Suzhou Xiangcheng Financial Holding Group. The funds will primarily be used for the construction of a large-scale production line, product R&D, and market expansion. —36Kr
Dolbomdream, Prefer, Lapasar, and more led our recent headlines:
- Dolbomdream, a South Korean company specializing in the production of a compression garment supporting individuals with special needs, secured an undisclosed amount of seed funding from Quest Ventures.
- Prefer, a food tech startup currently operating in Singapore, raised USD 2 million in a seed funding round led by Forge Ventures. Other investors that took part in this round include 500 Global, A*ccelerate (A*STAR), Better Bite Ventures, Sopoong Ventures, SEEDS Capital, Entrepreneur First, and Pickup Coffee.
- Lapasar, a Malaysia-based B2B wholesale and procurement platform, secured MYR 31 million (USD 6.4 million) from a diverse group of investors, including Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (KWAP), Creador Conscienta, Gobi Dana Impak Ventures (GDIV), and Adaptive Capital Partners.
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