Insider, a Turkish artificial intelligence-backed marketing platform, raised as much as $105 million in funding from two existing investors in a deal that highlights how AI companies are defying the global tech industry slump.
The company, founded in Istanbul in 2012 by six Turkish entrepreneurs, received the funding from the Qatar Investment Authority and Istanbul-based buyout firm Esas Private Equity, Insider said in a statement Wednesday.
Artificial intelligence has bucked a global decline in venture capital funding for tech startups since OpenAI Inc. released its ChatGPT bot last year, leading to a flood of interest in the disruptive technology. In one example, Ashton Kutcher, the Hollywood actor and VC investor, announced a new AI fund earlier this month.
Insider has raised a total of $274 million. In March 2022, it received $121 million in a Series D round from seven investors that valued the company at $1.22 billion.
“We are looking to achieve unparalleled levels of growth with an M&A-focused strategy,” Insider chief executive officer and co-founder Hande Cilingir said. “These funds will be used exclusively for the purpose of acquiring exceptional product companies.”
Insider acquired Istanbul-based MindBehind, a conversational commerce and messaging platform, for an undisclosed price earlier this year.
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After two boom years in 2021 and 2022, tech fund raising in Turkey plunged in January to March to the lowest level in ten quarters. The country’s startups received $56 million in funding from investors in the period from $1.27 billion in the first quarter of 2022, according to Istanbul-based startups.watch data.
Insider’s platform uses artificial intelligence to predict future consumption behavior. It has more than 1,200 clients, including Singapore Airlines, Toyota Motor Corp. and Vodafone Group Plc, in 28 countries.
