Also, Impossible Food raises US$300 million funding, and Schulte Group launched a marine-dedicated venture capital

Singapore-based AIQ joins forces with Russian social media VK.com [Business Wire]

AIQ Pte Ltd, the Singapore-based AI startup announced new partnerships with Publicis Media Russia and Russia’s social media networking giant, VKontakte or VK. Publicis Media Russia has added AIQ’s computer vision and video recognition technology to its portfolio to include multi-channel solutions that connect physical media to digital assets.

As a public introduction, Publicis Groupe launched a conceptual campaign using AIQ’s visual recognition technology in major Russian cities. It allows users to interact with out-of-home (OOH) advertisements to get player incentives for Clever, an online gaming app under VK.com, Russia’s social network.

“AIQ’s image recognition technology allows contact with consumers at a deeper level and introduce elements of digital-interactive to visual offline media. In our campaign, the engagement rate in offline media was three times higher, which shows a high level of audience interest.

In future, we see vast potential for using this technology both when working with technology companies and with FMCG brands. AIQ’s technology is ideal for FMCG companies that traditionally use offline media on the Russian market and are interested in new ways of connecting offline media with online tools,” said Julia Udovenko, Business Transformation Director, Publicis Media Russia about the partnership campaign.

AIQ offers proprietary video recognition technology. It is committed to making its computer vision AI technology brings greater ROI for brands, business owners, and media owners.

Uber selected Adyen as a 3D secure solution provider [Press Release]

Global payment platform Adyen announced that it has been selected by Uber to supports Uber’s seamless checkout experience with its 3D Secure (3DS) solution.

“Uber chose Adyen’s 3DS solution based on the innovative product features, the ease of implementation, and the expertise of their team,” said Marco Mahrus, Head of Payments Partnerships, Uber.

Also Read: Watch this guy hack your phone at #EchelonAsia2019!

“3DS authentication has become a top priority for all of our merchants. Merchants like Uber are leveraging our full-service capabilities to be prepared for evolving regulatory demands without sacrificing their customer experiences,” said Sam Halse, COO of Adyen.

3D Secure 2 (3DS 2) is a new technology standard developed by EMVCo that enables customer authentication to comply with regulations like PSD2 in Europe. It introduces a new approach to authentication through secure data sharing, biometric identification, and improved mobile-friendly customer experience.

Schulte Group launches venture capital for maritime startups [Press Release]

The Schulte Group has launched INNOPORT, a dedicated venture capital unit which identifies investment opportunities in the maritime startup ecosystem to equip entrepreneurs with smart capital.

The INNOPORT team is based in Hamburg, Limassol, and Singapore, and it is headed by Yiannis Sykas, Director of Strategy and Product Development at Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM).

“INNOPORT provides pre-revenue companies at the idea or prototype stage with the right network and the right capital, to scale up their business and to bring their ideas into fruition,” said Sykas.

INNOPORT will support high-potential early-stage maritime and logistics startups
predominantly in Europe and Asia, with the flexibility to collaborate with startups from
all geographic areas. INNOPORT will be a partner for potential pilot projects within BSM, sales-partnerships, and technical cooperations for the startups.

Impossible Foods raises US$300 million funding led by Temasek and Horizons Ventures [Press Release]

Impossible Foods has announced a US$300 million Series E funding round, led by existing investors Temasek and Horizons Ventures. This is the fifth equity funding round since Impossible Foods was launched in 2011 and it’s intended to accelerate the company’s scaleup — including accelerated hiring and capacity expansion.

The Series E round also includes individual investors including: Jay Brown, Kirk Cousins, Paul George, JAY-Z, Trevor Noah, Alexis Ohanian, Kal Penn, Katy Perry, Questlove, Ruby Rose, Phil Rosenthal, Jaden Smith, Serena Williams, will.i.am, and Zedd.

“We have cracked the molecular code for meat and built an intellectual property portfolio and brand,” said David Lee, Chief Financial Officer for Impossible Foods.

Also Read: GREE Ventures rebrands to STRIVE, announces US$130M first close of new fund

The latest funding round comes amid demand for the company’s flagship product, the plant-based Impossible Burger, which debuted at some of America’s restaurants in 2016 and is now sold in more than 7,000 restaurants on two continents.

Impossible Food had since launched in Singapore in March 2019, and has seen sales in a wide range of restaurants and cuisines throughout Hong Kong, Singapore, and Macau.

Impossible Foods was founded in 2011 by Stanford biochemistry professor and former pediatrician Dr. Patrick O. Brown. It makes meat from plants — with a much smaller environmental footprint than meat from animals, using modern science and technology to create wholesome food, restore natural ecosystems, and feed a growing population sustainably.
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