Participated · Series D · May 2020

M17 operates live-streaming apps such as 17 Media and LIVIT and a talent agency, Unicorn Entertainment. Its core product, 17 Media, enables creators to monetize via in-app gifts and social commerce; in January it processed over $500 million in virtual gifts for 30,000 exclusive content creators. The company says it is the largest live streaming platform in Japan with more than 60% market share and has seen a record number of artists and users sign up during the COVID-19 pandemic. M17 plans to use new funding to drive growth in Japan and expand into the United States, the Middle East and other regions, with a gradual LIVIT rollout in the U.S. over the next two years. The company previously cancelled a planned New York Stock Exchange IPO in June 2018 and has continued to raise private funding. The new capital is intended to support product rollouts, geographic expansion and further user acquisition. M17 is a Taiwanese live-streaming company that also offers dating via Paktor (which merged with M17 last year) and has launched short-video app PiePie and a U.S. streaming app called LiveAF. The company says it will use new capital to fund growth initiatives including infrastructure and feature development, resources and training, and expansion into the U.S. M17 said it is on target to book $170 million in sales for the year, up from $79.5 million in 2017, but reported an overall loss of $36.4 million for that year. In Q1 2018 the company reported $37.9 million in revenue and a $24.8 million loss, per its listing document. At the time of its IPO filing M17 reported $31.4 million in cash and cash equivalents, and the article notes finances were tight. The company has about 600 employees across seven offices in Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, the U.S., and Malaysia. M17 is a Taiwan-based company that operates a live-streaming platform and a data app business, and also runs dating services via its merger with Singapore-based Paktor. The company monetizes by selling virtual gifts to viewers who give them to streaming artists; dating services account for under 10% of revenue. Revenue surged 3.2X year-on-year, but M17 reported a negative $24.8 million loss in the first three months of 2018 and had $31.4 million in cash and cash equivalents. Active user growth was stagnant and revenue is highly concentrated: the top 10 users generated 12% of all revenue (about $447,220 per user in Q1 2018), the top 500 users produced the majority of revenue, and the top 100 streamers captured over one-third of artist income. M17 had pursued a U.S. IPO that was scaled down from an original $115 million target to around $60 million, but the NYSE listing was halted due to "settlement issues" after shares priced at $8. The company will remain private after taking a $35 million injection from existing backers, but it will need a clear Plan B to extend runway and address losses and user-growth challenges.

Led · Series A · Aug 2014

Ybrain develops a headband wearable that uses two front‑embedded sensors to emit 2‑milliamp electronic signals intended to stimulate brain activity in Alzheimer’s patients. The device is designed for 30 minutes a day, five days a week, can be worn at home, and is also intended for users with mild cognitive impairment. Ybrain is conducting clinical trials at Samsung Medical Center in Korea and reports its devices are 20–30% more effective than existing oral medication in those trials. The company says it is currently the only firm carrying out clinical trials for Alzheimer’s disease with a wearable health device; Soterix Medical is cited as its closest direct competitor while global pharma such as Pfizer and Novartis are indirect competitors. After finishing clinical trials and regulatory registration with the U.S. FDA and the KFDA, Ybrain plans to sell devices online and through hospitals. The startup was founded in 2013 by neuroscientist Kyongsik Yun with engineers from Samsung; co‑founder Seungyeon Kim said recent funding will support trials and manufacturing.