Intel Capital Announces US$40 Million Investment in 10 Innovative Asian Companies

Intel Capital, Intel Corporation's global investment and M&A organization, has announced US$40 million worth of investments in 10 Asian companies, reflecting the rapid spread of technology innovation across Asia. The investments include eight new investments in companies from China, India, Japan and South Korea, and two planned investments in companies from Taiwan.The 10 investments were announced at the 12th annual Intel Capital Global Summit in Huntington Beach, Calif. Formerly known as the CEO Summit, the Intel Capital Global Summit brings together approximately 900 portfolio company CEOs, corporate technology decision makers and industry leaders from around the world.

"Technology adoption and innovation is an accelerating global phenomenon, and Asian entrepreneurs from both mature and emerging markets are on the cutting edge of this trend," said Arvind Sodhani,

president of Intel Capital and Intel executive vice president. "These 10 companies offer unique technology - from remote security solutions to interactive cloud-based services - that enhances productivity, security and the online experience for consumers and businesses around the world."

The 10 investments cover a range of innovative technologies, including semiconductor design and manufacturing, green technology, software, security, social gaming and cloud-based services. Details of each investment, including the amount to be invested, were not disclosed.

 New investments

TELiBrahma Convergent Communications Pvt. Ltd. (India): TELiBrahma is a developer of mobile solutions using augmented reality, Bluetooth and WiFi technologies for advertising and retail segments. The company offers location-based and visual recognition-based applications that give consumers an enhanced digital experience in their interactions with major brands.

G-cluster Global Corp (Japan): G-cluster is a technology, content and services provider, offering interactive cloud-based services using the company's patented G-cluster technology. The G-cluster system has been commercially deployed as a cloud gaming service with French telecom operator SFR and in Japan as T's TV cloud video streaming service. G-cluster plans to use the invested funds for research and development and to expand into new markets.

Happiest Minds Technologies Pvt. Ltd. (India): Happiest Minds is a provider of cloud services, software product engineering, infrastructure management, security, testing and consulting services. The company's services are focused on disruptive new technologies that have the potential to change the IT landscape, including cloud computing, social media, mobility solutions, unified communications, business intelligence and analytics. Happiest Minds has operations in India and the United States, and plans to open offices in Europe and Singapore.

Makepolo.com Co. Ltd (China): Makepolo operates a business-to-business vertical search engine that serves the procurement needs of small- and medium-sized enterprises. Makepolo.com's proprietary search and database technology allows buyers to quickly identify and source products based on their required specifications. The company plans to use the invested funds for research and development and to expand into new markets.

Miartech (Shanghai) Inc (China): Miartech is a leader in power line communications products and systems technology, providing the building blocks and intelligent systems for smart grid, smart homes and energy management systems. Miartech's products help utilities and their customers better manage power consumption and reduce costs.

Neosem Inc. (Korea): Neosem is a provider of automatic test equipment for semiconductor manufacturing, used to test semiconductor memory components, memory cards and solid-state drives (SSDs). Neosem's cost-effective, flexible and scalable automated test platform is designed to help the SSD ecosystem meet rapidly expanding market demand for SSDs.

OneBe Inc. (Japan): OneBe is a security software vendor that develops remote data deletion services for PCs, Ultrabooks, tablets and smartphones, enabling service providers to protect their clients against data theft or loss. OneBe plans to use the invested funds for product development in support of Intel® vPro(tm) and Anti-Theft technology, and the development of a new security solution for cloud computing.

Outblaze Venture Holdings Ltd. (Hong Kong): Outblaze Ventures Holdings Ltd., also known as Animoca, is one of the largest global mobile media providers, having developed and published over 150 innovative entertainment and education apps under the Animoca(tm), Dream Cortex(tm), and Baby Cortex(tm) brands. Animoca plans to use the funds from this investment to drive further growth of its mobile application business and to strengthen the company's position as a leading provider of smartphone games.

 Planned investments, subject to satisfaction of closing conditions:

 Insyde Software Corp. (Taiwan): Insyde Software is a provider of system firmware and software engineering services for companies developing mobile devices, notebook PCs, servers, and embedded systems. Insyde Software's products and services help customers bring their products to market faster while reducing overall system development costs.

SNSplus Inc. (Taiwan): SNSplus is a publisher and distributor of social games with a focus on the Asian market. SNSplus' publishing platform provides servers, network bandwidth, customer support and localization services that help reduce the cost of bringing games to various social networking sites. SNSplus plans to use the invested funds to support product development and expand into new markets.

In addition to the new investments, Intel Capital announced that International Finance Corporation (IFC) joined the Intel Capital Global Investment Syndicate. Initiated in 2010, the Intel Capital Global Investment Syndicate is a select group of investors around the world that co-invest in select deals with Intel Capital. The program objective is to help companies grow faster by providing global market reach, technology expertise, board members and advisors along with a ready access to additional growth capital over time.

IFC is one of the largest global development institutions with a focus on dozens of countries in the developing market worldwide. By co-investing with Intel Capital in international companies such as China's HiSoft Technology and Russia's Yandex, IFC is helping to support the development of innovative technology companies