Hokkaido spinout AWL has collected fresh funding from a consortium led by Rakuten Capital.
AWL, a Japan-based artificial intelligence-equipped camera technology provider spun out of Hokkaido University, has picked up ¥2bn ($18.2m) in a funding round led by Rakuten Capital, a corporate venturing arm of e-commerce group Rakuten.
Electric utility Chugoku Electric Power, pharmacy chain operator Satudora Holdings and venture fund i-Lab4 also contributed to the round.
Founded in 2016 as AI Tokyo Lab, AWL is working on video cameras that are equipped with artificial intelligence technology to help run brick-and-mortar stores more efficiently. It has established a subsidiary in Vietnam that is also exploiting research from Hanoi University of Science and Technology.
The spinout previously secured an undisclosed amount from cold forging technology manufacturer Katagiri in September 2020.
It had received a combined $7.4m in series A and debt financing in February 2020 from Kyodo Tsushin Digital, a subsidiary of news agency Kyodo Tsushin, as well as internet company CyberAgent, printing services firm…
Thierry Heles
Thierry Heles is the editor of Global University Venturing, host of the Beyond the Breakthrough interview podcast and responsible for the monthly GUV Gazette (sign up here for free).
