University of Auckland Inventors Fund has contributed to a $40m series B round for AI-based avatar developer Soul Machines, with the investment led by Temasek.

Soul Machines, a New Zealand-based artificial intelligence (AI)-powered avatar platform spun out of University of Auckland, yesterday received $40m in a series B round featuring the institution’s Inventors Fund.
Singaporean state-owned investment firm Temasek led the round, which also included Salesforce Ventures, the corporate venturing subsidiary of enterprise software producer Salesforce.
Lakestar, Horizons Ventures and several unnamed existing shareholders also contributed to the round.
Daimler Financial Services, the financial and mobility services subsidiary of carmaker Daimler, was previously revealed as a backer when Soul Machines raised a first series B tranche in 2018, with the round having a target of $20m at the time. Inventors Fund and Horizons also contributed to the first tranche.
Founded in 2016, Soul Machines has developed a platform for clients to generate emotionally-responsive, brand-aware avatars that exploit AI technology to interact with customers in the same way a human representative would.
The spinout targets sectors such as banking, healthcare, education and automotive. It has already expanded internationally, with offices in the US, the UK, Japan and Australia, and will use the series B capital to drive further global expansion efforts and R&D activities.
Soul Machines collected $7.5m in a series A round led by Horizons Ventures in 2016, with participation from Iconiq Capital.
The spinout previously named Mercedes-Benz, a subsidiary of Daimler, as an existing backer, but it remains unclear whether the carmaker has invested separately to its parent.
– Feature image courtesy of Soul Machines

Thierry Heles

Thierry Heles is the former editor-at-large of Global University Venturing and Global Corporate Venturing, and was the producer and host of the Beyond the Breakthrough podcast until December 2024.