Global AI startup financing hit $5bn in 2016- Nikkei Asian Review

Artificial intelligence startups raised $5.02 billion worldwide in 2016 to hit a five-year high, as application of the technology expands from online services and finance to such far-ranging fields as agriculture. This trend is likely to continue through 2017, as investors scout out promising technologies and talent. AI-related startup funding rounds totaled 658 last year, up from 493 rounds in 2015, when funding reached $3.12 billion, according to U.S.-based research firm CB Insights. So-called mega-rounds are also increasing. For example, Texas-based StackPath, a startup offering AI-based cybersecurity services, took in $180 million.