Why Element.AI's $102 million round is just the beginning

The venture capital community was shocked last week with Element AI's fundraise. How can a Canadian startup founded in late 2016 raise a Series-A in June 2017 for a cool $102 million? Microsoft, NVIDIA, and Intel Capital were among the illustrious group of VCs who put in this sum into a round that makes almost all other Series-A rounds look paltry. When you peruse Element's webpage you see a simple HTML site that talks vaguely about AI-Strategy consulting, expert matching, and AI-as-a-Service (AIaaS). It leaves you scratching your head, wondering how this firm's ideas are earth shattering enough for such a rocket trajectory.