Glance raising $200M in Series D round from Reliance's Jio Platforms

Glance is a software company that uses artificial intelligence to bring personalized content to smartphone lock screens. The company today announced it is raising $200 million (about Rs 1,507 crore) in a new financing round to double down on growth in Asia as well as launch in key global markets including the USA, Brazil, Mexico, and Russia.

Reliance's Jio Platforms will lead the new Series D round. The transaction is subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals. Glance will be integrated into the revolutionary Pragati OS, which has been co-developed by Jio Platforms and Google, to bring LIVE content on Lock Screen for millions of Jio users, it said.

“Glance has grown at a phenomenal pace over the past two years and has given users a truly unique solution by unlocking the power of the lock screen for experiencing the internet, live content, creator-driven entertainment commerce, and gaming," said Akash Ambani, Director of Jio Platforms.

The funding announcement comes 13 months after it raised $140 million in funding at a billion-dollar valuation. That round was participated by tech giant Google and global investment firm Mithril Capital.

Founded in 2017 by Naveen Tewari, Rohan Choudhary, and Bikash Chowdhury, Glance makes a lock-screen platform that helps users see personalized content on the display while their phones are locked. Glance AI-driven mechanism enables users to enjoy content, products, and services of their choice, all delivered in an intuitive and visually stunning format. 

Concurrent with the proposed investment, the company has also entered into a business partnership arrangement with Reliance Retail Ventures Limited (“Reliance Retail”), providing for Glance’s ‘lock screen platform’ to be integrated into the JioPhone Next smartphones to transform the internet experience for millions of Jio users, it said.

According to the company's statement, The deal is expected to lead to further strategic collaborations between Glance, Reliance Retail, and Jio across devices, commerce, content, and gaming ecosystem.

"Jio’s investment into Glance brings a deep synergy of vision and philosophy. Jio is a truly disruptive company. It made the internet accessible for millions of users, making India one of the largest internet markets in the world. Reliance is now disrupting the smartphone market with the launch of its JioPhone Next smartphones. 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," Naveen Tiwari said.

"Jio’s investment is a huge validation of this vision and gives us the firepower to take the innovative experience of Glance to surfaces across the world. We look forward to working with Jio to build the content, creator, and commerce ecosystem of the future, together," Piyush Shah, Co-founder of InMobi Group & President & COO of Glance said.

Morgan Stanley acted as the exclusive financial advisor and Khaitan & Co. acted as the legal counsel to Glance. White & Case and K Law acted as the legal counsels and Ernst & Young provided accounting and tax due diligence services to Jio Platforms, it adds.

Glance says its lock screen platform is being used in more than 400 million devices across markets in Asia.

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