AI startup AlphaSense’s valuation rises to $2.5 billion after raising $150 million

Artificial intelligence (AI) startup AlphaSense’s valuation was boosted to $2.5 billion after it raised $150 million in a fresh round of funding.

The market intelligence platform on Thursday said that series E funding round was led by technology investment firm BOND and joined by existing investors including Alphabet's CapitalG, Viking Global Investors, and Goldman Sachs.

The funds raised will be used to grow the company’s extensive collection of searchable business content and make strategic acquisitions that expand its platform capabilities, AlphaSense said.

AlphaSense has “plenty of capital more than we could hope for” right now, CEO Jack Kokko told Reuters on a question about initial public offering (IPO) plans.

AlphaSense helps in extracting relevant data from a trove of public and private content such as equity research, earnings calls, company filings and news.

Mary Meeker, General Partner at BOND said: “Artificial intelligence tools that help you discover insights from data are scaling rapidly.”

Investing in new initiatives, especially in generative AI, is a focus too as the company explores expanding its product offering, Kokko told Reuters.

In a statement, AlphaSense said that BOND's investment reflects AlphaSense's strong revenue growth.

In April, AlphaSense had raised $100 million in a funding round backed by Alphabet's venture capital arm CapitalG, valuing the firm at $1.8 billion. 

Big tech companies have been pouring money into the AI space on the bet that it will be the next big growth area, with the potential to upend everything from the arts to finance.

Alphasense’s funding round comes at a time of white-hot interest in AI-oriented businesses, following Microsoft Corp.’s move this year to invest up to $10 billion in the parent of ChatGPT.

The New York-based Alphasense Inc was started in 2011. Its AI-based search engine has been used to help cancer researchers keep abreast of clinical trials and consultants come up with new business ideas.

(With inputs from agencies)