Funds for 'Real World Data' Platform Protege

In New York, AI data platform Protege has announced a $30 million Series A funding round, to be used in accelerating product development, expanding its data network into new domains and formats, deepening partnerships, and scaling its team and infrastructure.

Protege's platform promises to help clients 'unlock real-world data at scale', and deploy more capable, reliable models across industries such as healthcare and media. Its software aggregates data - including media content, audio recordings, de-identified health records and medical imaging - from trusted providers, via licensing agreements. It also provides technical expertise for curating, creating and optimizing datasets for AI.

The round was led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), and brings total funding to $65 million since the company's founding in 2024. Returning investors include Footwork, CRV, Bloomberg Beta, Flex Capital and Shaper Capital.

CEO and co-founder Bobby Samuels comments: 'Across industries, we're seeing demand for real-world data grow faster than the market's ability to supply it responsibly. At the same time, data is highly fragmented, and neither data holders nor AI builders are set up to operationalize it at scale. Protege serves as a trusted source of curated, and AI-ready data while unlocking new revenue streams for data providers. Partnering with Andreessen Horowitz allows us to scale this model and deliver high-quality, use-case-specific data that AI research teams can trust.'

'Protege has built a platform that respects the complexity of real-world data across industries,' states Daisy Wolf, Partner at Andreessen Horowitz, 'while making it usable for modern AI development.'

Web site: www.withprotege.ai .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.