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AI Unicorn SenseTime has been said to Mull Hong Kong, China IPO
SenseTime Group Ltd., China's largest artificial intelligence company, is exploring the dual listing in Hong Kong and China as it closes $1.5 billion in pre-IPO financing, according to people who are familiar with the matter.
The SoftBank Group Corp.-backed company is seeking a pre-funding valuation of about $8.5 billion before starting the initial public offering, the people said, asking not to be named because the matter is private. Sensetime is leaning towards a dual listing in Hong Kong and China, although the timeline has not been finalized, the people said. Its IPO plans are preliminary and are subject to change, they added.
The startup is kick-starting plans for an IPO that has been crippled by pandemic-induced market volatility, as well as a U.S. blacklist that threatens to restrict its access to vital American technology. It is now considering entering markets in Hong Kong and mainland China at the same time, betting on a recent revival in investor interest in new listings.
SenseTime is at the forefront of a rising crop of Chinese players who have benefited from the country's rapid adoption of facial recognition and AI technology across a variety of sectors. The company works with 127 cities across its home country to use cameras to monitor everything from traffic to residential complex security.
The spokeswoman for SenseTime declined to comment.
SenseTime became the most successful AI startup in the world after it raised around $2.5 billion in 2018. It was estimated at more than $7.5 billion, drawing investors including SoftBank and Singapore's Temasek Holdings Pte., people familiar with the transaction said at the time. Its sales rose 147 per cent to 5 billion yuan ($720 million) in 2019 , the company said.
The firm, which competes with Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.-backed Megvii Technology, specializes in systems that analyze faces and photographs on an immense scale and partners with law enforcement authorities, retailers and health researchers across China and globally.
The company has said that it has undergone rapid growth in recent years as it has grown to more markets, from the Suning.com Co. retail cameras to the Honda Motor Co. driverless vehicles.
