Leading law firm, MinterEllisonRuddWatts advised Soul Machines on its USD70 million capital raise led by Japanese venture capital firm, SoftBank.
The Auckland based AI start-up plans to use the new funds to expand its research into mimicking human intelligence, and boost its teams based in Auckland and at its second research centre in Arizona.
The new investors include SoftBank, and three US based venture capital firms: Solasta Ventures, Liberty City Ventures and Cleveland Avenue.
MinterEllisonRuddWatts Corporate Partner Mark Forman said: “This is a great outcome for Soul Machines. We are extremely proud to be working with such a cutting-edge company as it leads the way with revolutionary humanised AI platforms in an increasingly digital world.”
The MinterEllisonRuddWatts team, led by Mark Forman included partner Tom Maasland and Senior Associate James Marrier.
Soul Machines was co-founded in 2016 by tech entrepreneurs Greg Cross and Academy Weta Digital alumnus Mark Sagar. The company creates ‘virtual humans’ that are used by major consumer brands to interact with customers on screens in stores and online.
