InMobi's Glance raises USD 45 mn from Mithril Capital

Glance, a part of SoftBank-backed InMobi Group, on Tuesday said it has raised USD 45 million (over Rs 323 crore) in funding from Austin-based Mithril Capital.

Glance delivers artificial intelligence-driven personalised content to screen zero of smartphones. When a Glance user wakes up their phone, their lock screen has new visual and interactive content that is personalised for them.

In August this year, Glance had more than 50 million daily active users.

"This investment from Mithril will help us further accelerate our journey through continued innovation in content-format, personalisation and content discovery, and expand into new geographies," InMobi Group founder and CEO Naveen Tewari told PTI.

He added that Ajay Royan will join Glance's board.

Mithril Capital, with over USD 1.2 billion in committed capital, is a growth stage investment firm co-founded by Silicon Valley investors Ajay Royan and Peter Thiel.

Mithril's USD 45 million investment in Glance anchors a larger financing round. Glance did not disclose details around valuation.

Tewari said the company is looking at raising about USD 75 million in this round that is expected to close in the next few months.

The new funds will enable Glance to launch multiple new platforms, including Glance TV - a mobile-first, short form video platform; Glance Gaming - a destination for casual gamers; Glance Shopping, where content meets commerce; and Glance Nearby - a hyperlocal experiential platform.

The funds will also be used to expand further into Southeast Asia, including countries like Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Philippines in the coming months, Tewari said.

Designed with a mobile and video-first approach, Glance is currently available in English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu in India, and Bahasa in Indonesia.

Tewari said the company's user base has grown from 30 million to over 50 million in the last 3-4 months, and expressed confidence in getting to 75-100 million userbase by the end of the year.

Apart from Glance, InMobi Group also includes InMobi Marketing Cloud and TruFactor.