Analytics and AI solutions company Course5 Intelligence announced that they have successfully completed their round of funding of $53 million with a second close led by Nuvama Crossover Series of funds, managed by Nuvama Asset Management Limited. The second close saw participation by Carnelian Asset Advisors Pvt Ltd. and affiliates.
This funding round follows the first close done with 360 ONE Asset Management Limited (formerly known as IIFL Asset Management Limited) in May 2023. And this funding round will be augmented by the company’s own cash reserves and cash accruals to provide for an M&A war chest in the range of $80 million.
The penetration of advanced analytics and AI in enterprises is at a very nascent stage globally and recent advances in technological innovations may be the tipping point for widespread democratic adoption across industries and one that will likely see consistent growth over the next decade. And partnering with Course5 to capitalize on this opportunity is a natural fit for Nuvama Private Equity’s Crossover fund strategy, which has over time successfully identified and invested in leaders across sectors with structural growth, and in companies with established business models and seasoned management teams.
Course5 Intelligence has a structured M&A agenda, looking at synergistic assets in the US, the UK, and India, each in the range of $10 million to $20 million in revenue as well as smaller deep-tech AI startups. This growth funding round will fortify Course5’s inorganic growth plans and allow the company to leverage the synergies by adding new intellectual property (IP), capabilities, talent, and/or key client relationships.
Course5 has also absorbed Incivus, which is an AI-based Ad creation and optimization technology startup. And Incivus provides a precise, objective, and granular evaluation of all creative variables of an Ad and predicts the likelihood of success with technologies like Computer Vision, Computer Audition, Generative AI, and Natural Language Processing (NLP).
Course5 is currently in talks with 5 companies and plans to complete 2 acquisitions over a period of 12 months. And in addition to mergers & acquisitions, Course5 plans to use the investor funds for further innovation in specific areas of applied AI such as deep learning, computer perception, natural language, and Generative AI via Course5’s AI Labs.
KEY QUOTES:
“The data and AI revolution is finally here and the scope and scale of AI deployments across global enterprises are going to rapidly increase in the coming years. Recent advances in Generative AI, natural language and computer perception have completely removed the boundaries of what is possible. We want to ensure we maintain our leadership position amongst AI & Analytics solution providers by adding strategically to our portfolio to maximize our value proposition to global corporates… We are pleased to have on board Nuvama as an investor, someone who has a track record of partnering with sector leaders and is aligned to our vision.”
– Ashwin Mittal, Chairman and CEO of Course5 Intelligence
“Increase in complexity, type, and usage of data across the world and significant advancement in technologies including AI is driving adoption of data-driven intelligence through enterprises like never before across the globe. We see this as a structural long-term trend, and strongly believe that Course5 is very well-placed to benefit from this wave of acceleration, given its marquee client base, industry domain expertise and its effective delivery model. We are excited to partner with Ashwin and the Course5 team to accelerate the growth trajectory for the company and build a sustainable strong global enterprise in our domain.”
– Pranav Parikh, Managing Partner, Nuvama Private Equity
“Data Analytics and AI is a big revolution ahead of us and growing at a rapid pace transforming and disrupting businesses. Course5 is well placed to capture this huge opportunity over the next decade. We are very excited to be part of this growth journey and believe Course5 will create superior value for all its stakeholders in years to come.”
– Vikas Khemani, Founder, Carnelian Asset Advisors Pvt Ltd
