Intel Capital Announces $117M Across 14 New ‘Disruptive’ Startups

In the latest corporate venture news, Intel Capital just announced $117 million dollars of investments across 14 “disruptive” startups.

The new investments, shared at the company’s Global Summit, are part of its continued goal of putting $300 million to $500 million dollars into smaller companies annually, it says.

Prior to announcement, the firm had made a total of 1,292 investments, according to Crunchbase.

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What do just 14 more companies have to do with an already hefty number?

The company says that it plans to take “larger, more strategic positions” in this batch of startups. Intel Capital is tackling startups in artificial intelligence, communication, health care and manufacturing (for a list of their planned investments, including an AI chip company coming out of stealth in Toronto, click here).

The investment announcement was coupled with the news that Intel is partnering with HBCUvc, a nonprofit that trains students at historically black colleges and universities and hispanic-serving institutions about venture capital and technology entrepreneurship. Intel will help mentor and train students as part of the partnership.

That said, let’s give you some context on what this means for the general corporate investment scene, which seems to be popping up in tech headlines everywhere we look.

Some Context For You

As you might glean from our recent coverage of corporations showing interest in investing in industry newcomers, the space seems to be heating up.

Take Starbucks, which poured $100 million into a food-focused startup fund last month, or Chipotle, which is running an accelerator powered by its foundation to help sustainable startups learn how to scale.

From a different perspective, we see mature funds doubling down on startup investment. Just last week, Chevron Ventures, born in 1999, announced plans to throw $90 million into a group of energy startups. This, along with Intel Capital, which began in 1991, points to a similar narrative: large corporations with interests in new technology are funneling resources into startups. For many reasons, these corporate funds have the ability to do more than just a burrito-powered workshop, and that’s a pattern we’re tracking.

Illustration: Li-Anne Dias