ThinCI Inc., a deep-learning, vision processing startup developing groundbreaking machine learning technology, has announced a round of funding led by global automotive supplier DENSO International America Inc. Financing from Magna International Inc. and other individual investors will accelerate the final development of ThinCI’s silicon and software technology. The technology is used to improve electronics for enabling driver assistance and autonomous driving, to improve the efficiency of thermal systems, and for optimizing the productivity of the powertrain. The technology also will find ready application in a wide variety of everyday products. These include personal electronics as well as products that will enable smarter home, office, commercial places of business, industrial concerns and even the infrastructure of the modern world.
“We are thrilled that DENSO, Magna and other investors have contributed to the next round of financing for ThinCI,” said CEO Dinakar Munagala. “This new investment is the first to include major institutional investors. It signals a vote of confidence in ThinCI’s trailblazing solution that our angel investors first saw in their initial venture backing. It also confirms our belief that the innovation we’ve developed can reinvent the wide range of products that surround us everyday, creating devices that are uniquely different from what already exists and spawning entirely new markets. ThinCI was formed to not only create a new deep learning and vision processing architecture, but a different form of enterprise; one that provides enabling technology in the form of silicon and software that greatly speeds up the ability of our customers to add vision processing and deep learning capability that will transform their end product.”
“DENSO has been researching new developments in the area of computer vision processing, and our investment in ThinCI represents a strong belief that ThinCI’s technology will soon become a key component of next generation autonomous driving systems that require advanced computing techniques combined with deep learning capabilities,” said Tony Cannestra, DENSO International America’s director of corporate ventures. “DENSO is excited to become an investor of ThinCI, and we look forward to supporting ThinCI’s technology development, including working with both ThinCI and our OEM customers to deploy the technology into the industry.”
“We believe collaboration with startups and different industries is an absolute must when it comes to creating future mobility solutions,” said Swamy Kotagiri, chief technology officer at Magna. “We are excited to combine the work ThinCI is doing in the area of processing and software with Magna’s overall understanding of automotive systems and experience as a leader in providing semi-autonomous functionality, innovative powertrain solutions and other related systems to automakers around the world.”
“It is clear that deep machine learning technology will affect almost all aspects of our lives,” said Dado Banatao, managing partner, Tallwood Venture Capital, and chairman of the board of ThinCI Inc. “I am very confident ThinCI’s implementation of vision and deep machine learning will be the preferred solution in this space. DENSO’s investment is another sign of the rapidly building interest in this groundbreaking technology.”
