PatSnap raises $300m in a round co-led by SoftBank, Tencent, joins the unicorn club

PatSnap, a search engine for patents, announced it has secured US$300 million in its latest round of funding.

More funding details

• Lead investors: SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2 and Tencent Investment
• Returning investors:  CPE Industrial Fund, Sequoia China, Shun Wei Capital, Vertex Growth, and Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India.
• Stage: Series E

More company updates

• PatSnap tells Tech in Asia that its valuation has exceeded US$1 billion after the fresh fundraise. However, the company did not disclose its exact valuation.
• The firm plans to use the funds to develop its platform, accelerate product development, and acquire additional domain knowledge in industry sectors where its technology is used by research and development and intellectual property teams.
• PatSnap has a search engine that makes finding patents easier by visualizing search results as 3D topographical maps. Patents are grouped into “islands” according to their technology area, and colors represent different companies.
• The company claims to have over 10,000 customers, with more than 700 employees in its offices in Singapore, London, and Toronto.
• Its clients include Dyson, Spotify, Oxford University Innovation, and The Dow Chemical Company.

For more coverage about the company, head here. You can also click on the link below to view the company’s key details and funding history.