Chinese business accelerator COMB+ and the Beijing Institute of Collaborative Innovation (BICI) have launched a new Artificial Intelligence Fund with a target size of EUR65 million. The fund will focus on international technology startups entering the Chinese market.
The fund is part of the COMB+ Sino Track accelerator program, which was launched a year ago. Already 19 Nordic startups have participated in the program, which is now expanding globally.
The pitching competition at the event included 10 finalists; the jury selected children’s franchise Dibidogs as the winner, opening a shortcut to the Sino Track program.
“We are very happy to announce our new fund with the Beijing Institute of Collaborative Innovation as part of the Sino Track program,” says Leo Zhu, CEO of COMB+. “We see Helsinki, Beijing’s sister city, as the best place in the world to launch our fund. Our ambitions are global and we are today opening the Sino Track program to all exceptional technology and cultural startup aspiring to enter the Chinese market.”
Previous Sino Track alumni include Finnish acoustic technology company Flexound. The company’s CEO Mervi Heinaro, says: “China is the number one country for Flexound. Besides the great market potential, we also appreciate the speed at which things get done. In our minds, China is the best place to go global.”
The Sino Track program connected Flexound with over 20 relevant Chinese investors and institutions, including major media company Xinhuanet, and GOME, which operates over 2000 retail and online stores. Through the introductions, Flexound was able to open a sales channel in China in only three weeks.
The event also included an announcement from partnering fund Ascend Capital Partners, who have invested a total of EUR24 million in four Finnish companies.
