The LG Group said it will invest 20 billion won or $17 million in SoftBank's venture fund focused on artificial intelligence (AI) start-ups. Four affiliates of LG Group -- LG Electronics Inc, LG Chem Inc, LG Uplus Corp and LG CNS Co -- will jointly raise 20 billion won ($17 million) for Softbank Ventures' early-stage AI fund of 320 billion won, LG said. The investment in the Japanese tech giant's venture unit is part of the South Korean conglomerate's broader plan to develop advanced AI technologies that can be applied in a broad range of its products and services, Yonhap news agency reported. LG also unveiled a cloud-based AI platform for software developers to create synergy between its affiliates, vowing to expand collaborations with global IT giants, such as Amazon and Google. "We will pave the way for digital transformation through R&D and investment in AI technologies designed to break the existing framework and create more customer value," said Ahn Seung-kwon, the chief of LG Science Park.

Mythic announced today that it has closed a $40 million round of investment led by SoftBank Ventures to help bring a high-speed, low-power AI chip to market. The company will use this massive infusion of cash to help launch its specialized silicon next year, roughly seven years after the company was first incubated at the Michigan Integrated Circuits Lab. Mythic's technology performs machine learning inference calculations using analog electrical signals and flash memory, which the company says allows for higher performance and a lower-power draw than more conventional techniques, like using GPUs. Mythic is targeting one of the biggest bottlenecks in machine learning computation: moving data to and from memory for processing. Because all of the neural network inference computation takes place on the same silicon that stores its weights, it's supposed to work faster.

Artificial intelligence company twoXAR--a specialist in separating signals from noise in data-rich drug discovery projects--has raised $10 million in a first-round financing led by SoftBank Ventures. Co-founder and CEO Andrew Radin says the proceeds will be used to bring forward preclinical drug candidates including candidates for diabetes, liver cancer and rheumatoid arthritis, build the pipeline with new partnering deals and spinouts, and add to its headcount. The company's business model is to use its AI technology to identify promising drug candidates, validate them through preclinical studies and then work with partners to bring them into the clinic. The Palo Alto, California-based company--which was the first investment for Silicon Valley entrepreneur Andreessen Horowitz's $200 million biotech fund in 2015--already has some collaborations under its belt. In 2016, it signed deals with the Universities of Chicago and Stanford for drug discovery programs in atherosclerosis and liver disease, respectively, as well as Mount Sinai Medical in the area of diabetic neuropathy.