The SoftBank Vision Fund is a subsidiary of Japan-based SoftBank Group Corp (OTC Pink: SFTBF). The fund focuses on making strategic investments in growth-stage companies operating across internet-of-things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, telecoms, biotechnology, cloud technology, communications, software, and other technology-oriented industries. The fund was established in 2016 after SoftBank Group Corp CEO, Masayoshi Son, announced plans to raise a $100 billion fund to make strategic investments in “fast-growing technology companies.”
SoftBank Vision Fund made headlines recently after the company announced that it has placed a $100 million investment into Globality. This latest investment into Globality brings the SoftBank Vision Fund’s total investment to $172 million into the tech company.
Founded just over three years ago, Globality operates an artificial intelligence-powered smart sourcing platform, which helps companies connect with service providers across various specialties, including: marketing, consulting, legal, information technology, staffing, human resources, and more. Globality’s AI bot, “Glo uses natural language processing technology to both create and analyze the client’s Smart Brief to deliver on the exact needs of any project,” according to the company’s description.
In addition to the investment, Jeffrey Housenbold and Ted Fike of SoftBank Investment Advisors will join Globality’s board of directors. Here is the full press release detailing of the $100 million investment:
Globality Press Release:
MENLO PARK, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Globality, the tech company co-founded by Joel Hyatt and Lior Delgo to connect multinational companies with the world’s best service providers at the right price for every project, announced today that it has secured an investment of $100 million from the SoftBank Vision Fund. This new investment brings Globality’s total funding to $172 million since being founded just over three years ago. As part of the investment, Jeffrey Housenbold and Ted Fike of SoftBank Investment Advisers will join the company’s board.
This latest round of capital infusion will enable Globality to exponentially accelerate its growth through investment in its AI technology, increasing business capacity by hiring additional world-class talent within engineering, product, and client teams, and expanding its Marketing and Sales programs to drive brand awareness and acquire new enterprise businesses.
The Vision Fund is the latest in a growing list of significant names backing Globality, including former Vice President Al Gore; Dennis Nally, former Global Chairman of PwC; Ken Goldman, former Chief Financial Officer of Yahoo; John R. Joyce, former Chief Financial Officer of IBM, and Mark Vorsatz, CEO of Andersen Tax.
Through its AI-powered Platform, Globality is bringing digital disruption to procurement of B2B services and revolutionizing the RFP process. Globality efficiently matches companies with service providers that meet their specific needs, cutting the sourcing process from months to hours, and delivering savings of 20% or more for companies.
Joel Hyatt, co-founder, chairman and CEO of Globality said:
“I’m excited to welcome the SoftBank Vision Fund as the latest investor in Globality. It is a strong vote of confidence in our vision to revolutionize how companies source services. This investment will accelerate our efforts to empower companies to find and select the best service providers at the right price for every project, while enabling greater economic inclusion around the world.
Globality’s AI technology does away with the antiquated, analog RFP process and instead creates a level playing field that gives all companies, no matter their size or location, an opportunity to compete based on the merits of proven performance, expertise, and passion.”
Jeffrey Housenbold, Managing Partner at SoftBank Investment Advisers said:
“Professional services represent a multi-trillion global market but procurement is mainly still a cumbersome manual process. Globality has spent several years in developing proprietary AI-enabled matchmaking capabilities to address these inefficiencies head-on. Pioneering a two-sided, international marketplace creates benefits for both enterprise clients and service providers, and with it the potential for Globality to capture massive network effects as the platform continues to scale. It’s exciting to support Joel and his team on this journey.”
How Globality works
Companies looking to source external service providers in various sectors – marketing, consulting, legal, IT, and HR – are guided through Globality’s Platform using AI technology.
Through a dynamic exchange between the client and the Platform, Globality’s AI bot – Glo- uses natural language processing technology to both create and analyze the client’s Smart Brief to deliver on the exact needs of any project.
Glo sifts through a database of more than 17,000 potential providers in 100 countries spanning more than 600,000 professionals – analyzing millions of data points from a provider’s location, culture and work history, right down to the expertise of its individual staff members – to find the best service provider at the right price for every project.
Globality’s user-friendly Platform allows clients to easily compare the best matches recommended by Glo. Once companies have selected a provider, Glo is able to learn from client feedback how well the provider is performing.
Using an AI platform instead of the RFP process saves clients significant time and money through competitive pricing pressure from providers of all sizes anywhere in the world – including the client company’s existing suppliers. In one recent project for a Fortune 100 financial institution, the cost was reduced by over 50% as a result of sourcing on the Globality platform.
NOTES TO EDITORS
1) Globality’s last investment round, Series C, was in March 2017 and raised $35 million as the company opened a new London office. Its Series A investment round of $10,000,000 took place in March 2015, followed by a Series B investment round of $27,250,000 in December 2015.
