Deloitte, EY & McKinsey all report the lack of skilled AI engineers to be the biggest bottleneck to AI implementation in businesses. With that in mind, Dutch startup FruitPunch AI is doubling down on training engineers in the application of AI for good to meet the world’s demand for skilled engineers in this area.
Now they are announcing a €500k funding round led by Shamrock Ventures in syndication with initial investor LUMO Labs and various angels with strong industry experience. With this fresh capital FruitPunch AI will accelerate its vision to become the global AI for good skills training platform and community.
The funding will be used to develop the platform’s features to support personalized learning journeys, hire strategic roles to expand in the HR market and turn currently running pilot programs into sustainable partnerships.
“We’re thrilled to have Shamrock Ventures & LUMO Labs on board who are mission aligned with us to do maximal good by building an impact business that scales. Now we have the funding and expertise to realize this vision and help companies around the world find, retain & up-skill the best AI talent,” says Buster Franken, CEO and cofounder of FruitPunch AI.
Founded in 2018, the platform lets AI engineers collaboratively solve AI for Good challenges to train their AI skills with partners like Stanford University, European Space Agency and WWF. Companies use it to upskill & retain their current workforce and find new, real-world vetted AI talent.
“With the increasing range of AI possibilities it is ever more important that developers are able to use those possibilities for good purposes. FruitPunch AI facilitates this for developers throughout their careers. Shamrock is very excited to assist FruitPunch AI in their ambition to become the global AI for good community,” says Tommy Hurley, Founder & Managing Partner at Shamrock Ventures.
FruitPunch AI currently provides AI engineering power to industry-leading NGOs, impact startups & research centers like NXP, Stanford University & World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).
“Keeping up with the speed of advancements in Artificial Intelligence is challenging, but a massive competitive advantage for those who succeed in doing so,” said Andy Lürling, Founding Partner of LUMO Labs. “The FruitPunch AI platform allows medium, large and giant organizations to continuously understand and improve the skills and mindset of their software developers, data engineers and related staff. The cake underneath this cherry is that the platform is designed to put forward urgent social challenges as the grindstone to sharpen skills and mindset of every single individual on the platform. This has already resulted in real-life, ground-breaking AI solutions for good.”
