Kuang-Chi GCI Fund to Invest $250m in Global Startups

          Following Successful GCI Fund I, GCI Fund II Opened to Selected Investment Partners

          Kuang-Chi Group has launched its second Global Community of Innovation (GCI) fund, which will invest up to $250 million in companies developing technology in industries including robotics, IoT, telecommunications, and digital health. The fund has a focus on global startups and follows a previous investment of $50 million in similar fields, the company announced today.

          Through investments of the first GCI fund, Kuang-Chi has taken stakes in companies with a focus on innovative and disruptive technologies, including video intelligence provider Agent Video Intelligence (Agent Vi).

          Itsik Kattan, CEO of AgentVi, remarked, "After Kuang-Chi became a strategic investor in Agent Vi, our cooperation has made rapid headway. Among other initiatives, we will open an Innovation Center in early 2017 in Tel Aviv, Israel, which will look to identify and integrate Smart City technologies being developed in Israel with our and Kuang-Chi's offering."

          In addition to Agent Vi, the GCI fund has invested in global innovators including: gesture control leader eyeSight; emotions analytics pioneer Beyond Verbal; biometric authentication provider, Zwipe; and UAV surveillance company SkyX. Kuang-Chi has also established a number of JVs to strengthen its portfolio companies' market positions, including one JV recently announced with Zwipe in Shenzhen.

          Dr. Ruopeng Liu , chairman of Kuang-Chi, stated, "The first $50 million tranche of the $300 million GCI fund has been invested successfully. We look to build on our momentum by expanding our investment focus and, for the first time, offering our partners the opportunity to participate in our investments."

          The first Chinese technology company to have created an Israel-focused strategic VC fund, Kuang-Chi has experience leveraging its technological expertise and personnel to identify potential in startups and new technologies. Dr. Liu added, "The GCI portfolio companies will share access to Kuang-Chi's technology, sales and distribution capabilities, and the wide network of partners with whom we work in China and beyond. Our investments come with an opportunity to expand business in the Chinese market and to establish relationships with leaders across multiple industries."

          Dorian Barak, Kuang-Chi's global investment director, stated, "Chinese companies are becoming important investors in Israel, with market leaders such as Alibaba, Baidu, Kuang-Chi, and Tencent joining Intel, Google, Apple and others as strategic investors and acquirers. At the same time, more and more Israeli start-ups are focusing on bringing their products and capabilities into Chinese market."

          "I am delighted by the progress Kuang-Chi has made in Israel and look forward to seeing GCI expand its activity with additional investment partners. Kuang-Chi's technological strength, geographic reach and market position offer significant benefits to portfolio companies seeking to operate in Asia," Dorian Barak commented.