AI-Driven Asset Management Startup, Catapulted To Fame By Tesla Trades, Raises $146M From SoftBank

Artificial intelligence-focused fintech group Qraft Technologies Inc. said it has received a $146 million investment from Japanese conglomerate SoftBank Group Corp. SFTBY.

What Happened: The investment includes primary growth capital and secondary capital that will be used to fund share purchases from investors, Qraft said.

The South Korea-based startup expects the SoftBank investment to accelerate its ongoing expansions into the U.S. and China. The two parties will also work on developing AI-enabled public portfolio management systems for SoftBank.

Qraft CEO Marcus Kim said his company’s partnership with SoftBank marks the start of AI technology fundamentally changing the $100 trillion asset management industry.

See Also: Famed Robot-Run ETF Says This Is Why It Now Has Tesla As Its Top Holding

Why It Matters: Qraft develops and operates deep learning-based algorithms that provide portfolio analysis to financial institutions.

The company has looked to demonstrate the performance of its proprietary AI engine throughout its exchange-traded funds (ETFs) listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

The Qraft AI-Enhanced US Large Cap Momentum ETF AMOM became popular over accurately predicting the price movements of electric vehicle maker Tesla Inc.’s TSLA shares in multiple instances.

The ETF revealed in December that it had Tesla as its top holding during that month.

Price Action: AMOM shares closed almost 3.6% lower in Thursday’s regular trading session at $32.07 and further lost 2.5% in the after-hours session to $31.49.

SoftBank’s shares closed almost 3.2% lower in the regular trading session at $24.05.

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