Israeli martech startup Exceed.ai banks $4m in seed money

Israel-based martech startup Exceed.ai has secured US$4 million in a seed round from investors such as Glilot Capital and West Fountain Global Fund.

Angel backers, including former Red Hat president Alex Pinchev and WalkMe chairman Gur Shomron, also participated in the round, according to a statement.

Exceed.ai founders Ilan Kasan (left) and Yaron Ismah-Moshe / Photo credit: Exceed

Founded in 2016, Exceed provides an artificial intelligence-driven communications solution that helps companies scale their marketing and sales operations by automatically qualifying leads through email, chat, and text messaging.

The company claims its proprietary natural language processing engine reaches a 97% accuracy rate in understanding a lead’s responses. It’s being used by companies such as Demandbase, SugarCRM, CBORD, and Universal Robots.

Exceed aims to invest the fresh funds in accelerating its growth by expanding to new markets and onboarding new clients.

“Some of our clients have seen up to a 39.5% increase in qualified leads for the same marketing efforts they already undertake without additional headcount,” claims Exceed co-founder and CEO Ilan Kasan. The head chief attributes this to its multi-channel approach, which lets it “reach audiences where crucial conversations occur.”

In the statement, Exceed said the Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated companies’ adoption of AI technology in an effort to boost efficiency. According to a MarketsandMarkets report, the global conversational AI market alone is expected to reach a valuation of US$13.9 billion by 2025, up from just US$4.8 billion this year.

Other startups in the space include South Korea’s Skelter Labs and Singapore’s Pand.ai. Another is Active.ai, which recently secured funding as part of the Singapore Solidarity Fund’s first batch of investments.