Whale lands USD $40 million to drive global AI expansion

Whale has raised a USD $40 million Series C3 extension, bringing its total Series C financing to USD $100 million.

The Singapore-based enterprise AI company said the round was led by CMB International and SMBC Asia Rising Fund, with participation from Krungsri Finnovate, Singtel Innov8, Hyundai Motor Group and Charisma Partners.

Earlier Series C investors included Bosch Ventures, MTR Lab, MDI Ventures, Gentree Fund and Linear Capital. Whale serves more than 1,600 enterprise customers in over 45 countries and manages more than 600,000 edge AI nodes globally.

The company will use the funding to expand deployments in North America and across Asia-Pacific, while also targeting the Middle East and Europe.

Whale develops software for enterprise operations that combines data from cameras, sensors and audio systems with workflow tools. It focuses on sectors including retail, automotive, food and beverage, manufacturing and financial services.

Its platform includes SpaceSight for analysing activity in stores, showrooms and commercial facilities, and Echo for analysing frontline sales conversations. Other products in the suite are Lume for content distribution, Alivia for workflow automation, Harbor for knowledge management and compliance, and Novus for AI infrastructure and governance.

The company says these products are built on its Business World Model, designed to interpret signals from physical environments. Whale positions the model as the foundation for linking operational data with execution across enterprise settings.

Jerry Ye, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Whale, said the latest round would support a broader international push.

"This new funding isn't about starting from scratch. It's about advancing what we've built here," Ye said. "We're scaling our teams globally, deepening enterprise partnerships and expanding our platform integrations with local infrastructure. Enterprises across regions are grappling with rising operational costs and the urgent need to turn unstructured operational data into decision-ready intelligence, and we're already delivering that today."

Investor backing

The new investors include financial institutions, telecom-backed venture funds and corporate investors from the automotive sector. Their support reflects continued interest in AI tools aimed at improving frontline operations and extracting usable data from physical sites.

SMBC Group pointed to Whale's approach to structuring data generated in real-world settings.

"Whale's ability to unlock and structure data from physical environments, enabling enterprises to turn real-world activities into actionable intelligence, is particularly compelling. By combining Whale's technology with SMBC Group's global client network and industry expertise, we look forward to delivering value across industries and regions," said Mayoran Rajendra, Managing Director and Head of AI Transformation Office, SMBC Group.

Charisma Partners said it sees a structural shift in how companies use AI in operations.

"We have witnessed retail digitization undergo a fundamental shift from tool integration to AI-native operations, and see the AI-driven efficiency trend as irreversible," said Zheng Xiang, Vice President of Charisma Partners. "Whale's perception-cognition-execution loop reshapes the operational foundation for enterprises, and we believe Whale is poised to lead the next generation of enterprise AI infrastructure."

CMB International cited Whale's existing deployments across Asia-Pacific and its commercial progress in multiple markets.

"Whale has built a strong technology foundation with a clear direction in enterprise AI, and Jerry and his team have demonstrated the ability to execute across complex, real-world deployments, which is rare at this scale," said Dr. Zhang Guoyong, General Manager of the Private Equity Investment Management Department, CMBI. "We see long-term potential in their approach and are pleased to support their next phase of growth."

Krungsri Finnovate highlighted Whale's regional fit with networks in Thailand and across ASEAN.

"Whale is one of the few players with native, enterprise-grade AI capable of powering a full-suite, omnichannel product across the entire customer journey, and that capability is exactly why we chose to invest through Finnoventure Private Equity Trust I. With Krungsri's strong footprint in Thailand and ASEAN, and MUFG's global network behind us, we're well placed to support Whale's expansion across the region," said Palida Artispong, Acting Managing Director and Head of Portfolio Growth and Investor Relations, Krungsri Finnovate.

Hyundai Motor Group said it was attracted by Whale's use of AI in sales, marketing, service and customer engagement.

"We are excited to support Whale as it scales an enterprise AI platform that goes beyond software enablement to address real-world business operations, translating innovation into tangible business impact for customers across sales, marketing, service and customer engagement," said Keith Noh, Vice President and Head of ZER01NE, Hyundai Motor Group. "As Whale deepens its presence across key global markets, we look forward to partnering with the team on its next phase of growth."

Linear Capital, one of Whale's earliest investors, said it had seen the business expand its product range and international reach over time.

"We've watched Jerry and the Whale team continuously embed AI capabilities deeply into enterprise products, and their ability to evolve alongside AI has produced rapid growth in both product strength and global reach. As one of Whale's earliest investors, Linear Capital looks forward to seeing Whale emerge as a global leader in enterprise AI," said Zheng Can, Managing Director, Linear Capital.