[NEW YORK] SenseTime Group, China's largest artificial intelligence company, is exploring a dual listing in Hong Kong and China as it closes in on US$1.5 billion of pre-IPO financing, according to people familiar with the matter.
The SoftBank Group-backed company is seeking a pre-funding valuation of about US$8.5 billion before kicking off an IPO, the people said, requesting not to be named because the matter is private. SenseTime is leaning towards a dual listing in Hong Kong and China though it hasn't finalised a timeline, the people said. Its IPO plans are preliminary and subject to change, they added.
The startup is kickstarting plans for an IPO that had been waylaid by pandemic-induced market volatility as well as a US blacklisting that threatens to curtail its access to vital American technology. It's now considering tapping markets in Hong Kong and mainland China simultaneously, betting on a recent resurgence of investor interest in new listings.
SenseTime is at the vanguard of a rising crop of Chinese players that have benefited from the country's rapid adoption of facial recognition technology and AI across a plethora of sectors. The company is working with 127 cities across its home country to use cameras to analyse everything from traffic to residential complex security.