Aptiv and CAC Holdings joined corporate venturing units Trend Forward Capital and Motley Fool Ventures in a $26m round that almost doubled the MIT spinout's funding.
Affectiva, a US-based emotion-recognition software spinout of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), has received $26m in funding from automotive parts supplier Aptiv, IT services provider CAC Holdings, cybersecurity technology producer Trend Micro and financial data provider The Motley Fool.
Trend Micro and The Motley Fool participated in the round through corporate venturing units Trend Forward Capital and Motley Fool Ventures.
Spun out of MIT Media Lab in 2009, Affectiva is developing software that can identify human emotions by reading and analysing facial expressions. It is also capable of identifying objects people are using and reading the interactions they make.
Companies use the technology to test how consumers engage with advertising, videos and television programming. Automotive manufacturers, ride hailing platforms and fleet managers are also building the software into their vehicles to help understand drivers’ and passengers’ mood and emotions.
The funding will be used to further develop…
