Glance raises $200 mn from Jio; announces partnership with Reliance Retail

Glance, the AI-driven lock-screen platform of inMobi, announced on Monday that it has agreed to raise $200 million from Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries' Jio Platforms Limited in its Series D round of funding. 

The proposed investment by Jio is aimed at accelerating Glance’s launch in several key international markets outside of Asia such as the USA, Brazil, Mexico and Russia, the companies said in a joint statement.

"It is aiming to create the world’s largest live content and commerce ecosystem on the lock screen and will use the funds raised to expand globally," it claimed.

In addition to Jio Platforms, Glance is also backed by technology giant Google and Silicon Valley-based venture fund Mithril Capital.

Concurrent with the proposed investment, Glance has also entered into a business partnership arrangement with RI's retail company Reliance Retail Ventures Limited (RRVL), providing for Glance’s ‘lock screen platform’ to be integrated into the JioPhone Next smartphones. This is the latest in a series of strategic partnerships between Glance and global players in the mobile ecosystem. The deal is also expected to lead to further strategic collaborations between Glance, Reliance Retail and Jio across devices, commerce, content and gaming ecosystem.

Naveen Tewari, founder & CEO of InMobi Group said “It is not just the investment that we are excited about, it’s the strategic nature of the partnership that really helps us scale and go extremely deep in India. Glance will be integrated into the Pragati OS, which is jointly being developed with Jio and Google.”

Tewari also added, “Mukesh Ambani has been a source of immense inspiration for me since my early days and it is an honor to have Jio becoming a strategic partner in our journey. Jio’s investment into Glance and Glance’s presence on the lock screen of JioPhone Next smartphones will lead to a paradigm shift in how its users experience the Internet.” 

Glance’s lock screen platform is present on more than 400 million devices across markets in Asia. Glance has enabled users to experience the best of the Internet without searching, downloading any apps or even unlocking their phones.

On the other hand, Jio aims to support innovation, enterprise and solutions in the tech-digital space and has emerged as one of the most active digital accelerators for the Indian market, having backed several exciting next-level technologies and entrepreneurial teams, the joint statement from the companies added.

Speaking about its investment in Glance, Akash Ambani, Director, Jio Platforms Limited, said, “With the help of this investment, Glance expects to launch in several key markets globally as well as extend the experience to millions of Jio users, further reinforcing our commitment to provide the most advanced and next-level tech and digital ecosystem for consumers in India and beyond.”