China Everbright Limited’s Everbright-IDG Fund leads investment in top AI+fashion crossover Brand i.am+ to expand in the greater China Market through partnerships
China Everbright Limited (“CEL”; stock code: 165.HK)’s Everbright-IDG Industrial Fund, an investment vehicle jointly established by China Everbright Ltd and IDG Capital, has announced that it has completed a new financing round for the top AI+Fashion company i.am+ as the only Chinese investor, which will be officially initiated by the i.am+ Greater China Company jointly launched by both parties. The investment is another signature project under Everbright-IDG Fund’s “new economy” intelligence-driven investment strategies. Everbright-IDG Fund will proactively explore the rapidly growing Greater China market together with the AI+Fashion & Consumption crossover high-tech company in future.
The same day, i.am+ founder & CEO William Adams, i.am+ Co-Founder & President Chandra Rathakrishnan, and Victor Ai, Managing Director of China Everbright Ltd & Managing Partner of Everbright-IDG Fund, attended the launch ceremony along with other guests in Beijing.
Top AI Company welcomes core strategic Chinese shareholder
Thanks to the ever-increasing expansion of smartphones, the global earphone market now shows the tendency of high speed growth, with the Chinese market expected to reach 10 billion RMB in 2018. With the impetus generated by smart intelligent technologies in particular, smart wearable gadgets, with top-level smart earphones as the carrier, are poised to explode into a high-speed growth period. AI technologies apparently serve as an important support force amid this wave of development.
i.am+ is a top-notch AI+fasion crossover company founded by will.i.am, co- founder of Beats, global hip hop icon, and lead singer of Black Eyed Peas, its core executives all from Apple, Sony, Beats and other leading Internet and smart hardware companies. Its currently 300-plus core employees are based in Los Angeles, New York, Israel, Singapore, and other places.
i.am+’s core products combine earphones, Bluetooth speakers, and AI-enabled wearable gadgets. What it represents has shifted beyond consumption e-products to the rigid demand and pain points of “AI powered music scenes”, time saving features and enhanced music search experience. At present, this product technology is matured enough for mass production and has begun to sell at Harrods in London, 497 Apple stores worldwide and major online and offline channels in China.
Based on will.i.am’s own strong market appeal and Beats’ previous successful experience in business, i.am+’s crossover concept of AI + FASHION + CONSUMPTION has been recognised in each of its financing rounds by top-level entrepreneurs and investment institutions worldwide. It has gathered famous investors such as Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff, funds owned by Lee Kai Chung, media tycoon Rupert Murdoch, Access Industries (controlling shareholder of Warner Music), Kering Group (principal shareholder of Gucci and other luxury brands), Deutsche Telekom, Flextronics and so on.
This round of Everbright-IDG Fund’s leading investment in i.am+ marks the first time in the company’s history to welcome core strategic shareholder from China. “During the past few years, we have witnessed a profound scientific and technological transformation that the world is experiencing. It has stepped into a rapid iterative process in which technology plays a leading role in shaping a new way of life. i.am+ is committed to creating a game-changing brand-new product that combines fashion and technology, and we are seeking the most outstanding partners across the world. It is an honour to achieve this vision jointly with Everbright-IDG Fund. The cooperation with such a first line international institution with profound investment potential and resources has made up for an important link in our globalization map.” said will.i.am.
Bilateral resources combined for a strategic layout in the Chinese market
As an important component of the bilateral strategic cooperation, Everbright-IDG Fund has announced the launch of a joint venture together with i.am+ for expansion on sales, new production development, and sub-brand building in the Greater China market, with the fund entitled to an ownership of the joint venture. Both parties will, under this framework, give full play to their own strengths in technological development and market resources to promote a vigorous exploration of the top-end earphone market in the Greater China area, and in-depth cooperation in such projects as jointly building a localized system of production, research and sales.
This win-win cooperation is a perfect example of financial capital’s role in promoting international enterprises to set up a business in the Greater China market. According to the fund, Everbright-IDG Fund has completed the establishment of i.am+’s company in China after several months of intensive preparation, and has achieved encouraging outcomes in brand building, expanding online and offline sales channels and marketing strategy positioning. In 2018, the fund will also set up vendors in jd.com, other online platforms and the mid and high ends of the sales network of 30-plus cities by leveraging its own powerful capital and post-investment support, and step up efforts in cooperation in technological R&D and integrating marketing areas.
In terms of the AI technology features, Everbright-IDG Fund has promoted extensive cooperation between i.am+ and other strong domestic high-tech companies relying on its own resources. i.am+ announced on the day of the event that its products will enter Terminus’ AIOT future labs to conduct in-depth practice on closer integration of artificial intelligence with the internet of things (IOT).
“AI is reshaping industries on a grand scale. This is a great opportunity. Everbright-IDG Fund is determined to be optimistic about AI powered investment themes. In our view, i.am+ is not just a brand of trend products in fashion and consumption fields, but a leading enterprise that has contextualized and personalized AI technologies, while enriching them with features of fashion and life.” said Victor Ai, Managing Director of China Everbright Ltd & Managing Partner of Everbright-IDG Fund, “We are beyond thrilled at the prospect that under the concerted efforts of capital assistance and intelligence-driven programs, Everbright-IDG Fund and i.am+ will soon contribute to the Chinese market a disruptive new trend and smart crossover product to overtake Beats.”
With the help of the powerful influence of China Everbright Ltd and IDG Capital, Everbright-IDG Fund has indeed honoured its previous commitment of leveraging more resources to provide i.am+ with support and help for substantial scale-up of efforts in expansion in the Greater China market. The case itself will also be a milestone that demonstrates Everbright-IDG Fund’s capacity in top level cross-border investments. Through this investment, the fund will be able to have in advance the lock-in of an extremely powerful unicorn enterprise.
