Global AI Startup ThinCl Raises $65 Mn, To Triple Its Headcount In India

ThinCI Inc., an AI hardware startup based in California with offices in UK and Hyderabad, India has announced the successful closure of its $65 Mn Series C round. The investment round was led by returning investor DENSO and its subsidiary NSITEXE, Inc., and Temasek with participation from a syndicate of strategic investment funds.

The syndicate of strategic investment funds includes automotive companies from across the world with a large representation from Asia. Temasek led a consortium of venture funds including GGV Capital (China/US), Wavemaker Partners (Singapore), and SG Innovate (Singapore).

The company aims to expand the current team to more than 350 in India, by hiring talent for their engineering and customer operations groups.

ThinCI Inc. was incorporated in 2010 and has been associated with the development of computing platforms for the expansive AI/Machine Learning global market. Apart from ramping up the production of its AI platforms, the company is currently keen on hiring engineers and is focused on building truly global products and services in AI across its India, UK and US offices.

A recent study conducted by Gartner highlights that AI will create 2.3 Mn jobs worldwide by 2020 out of which a significant share will be generated in India alone.

“The evolving education narrative together with the maturing market for AI technology will make this possible, therefore making India the preferred market to hire the right kind of talent,” mentions ThinCl in a media statement.

ThinCI CEO Dinakar Munagala believes that over the years, there has been a sizable shift in the mindset of businesses and other industry stakeholders in terms of advanced technology adoption. This has also contributed to the nurturing of a huge pool of talent in India.

With such a positive and expansive ecosystem in the making, India proves to be a prime market to expand and explore. “For the coming years automotive sector, logistics, and smart cities are few areas where AI will contribute to improving efficiencies and help us live better lives,” he added.

The company is actively hiring from premium Indian engineering institutions and is also visiting top business schools for recruitment this year. Across hardware and software, the company is looking to hire candidates and professionals with the ability to build efficient and scalable AI technology systems.

India is currently taking an aggressive approach towards adoption of AI. Most recently, homegrown decacorn Paytm launched its own AI cloud computing platform. Also, the Indian government has set up a task force to provide recommendations around boosting the AI sector in the country.

Other notable players in the AI hardware space in India are Chaipoint, Netradyne, which offers Driveri, a powerful camera that analyses driving patterns and can help determine the cause of an accident; and Tricog, which has built its own sensory device and fits it on the ECG machines, thereby providing remote ECG analysis, among others