h3. Former NexTag President Brings Customer-Centric Internet Expertise to the AVA Artificial Intelligence Lead Management Platform
SAN FRANCISCO, CA; May 1, 2013 - Kennet Partners, a leading international growth equity firm that invests in companies across North America and Europe, today announced it has made a $16 Million investment in AVA.ai LLC, the fast-growing Internet Technology company behind AVA, the Artificial Intelligence lead management platform. As part of the investment, Kennet has appointed Internet industry veteran Mark A. Bradley as CEO of AVA.ai.
"Kennet reviewed many bootstrapped, founder-led companies over the past year and were very impressed with what AVA's Founder, Ben Brigham, and his team have accomplished," said Eric Filipek, Managing Director of Kennet, Silicon Valley. “Our significant investment demonstrates our confidence in how machine learning is changing lead management. Further, the addition of Mark A. Bradley, a seasoned executive with whom we’ve had a long association, as CEO adds significant strength and depth to this management team."
Bradley brings extensive executive leadership and high-growth, customer-focused Internet business expertise to AVA.ai. He sits on the Executive Advisory Board at Kennet Partners and, prior to joining AVA.ai, was part of the founding team at NexTag – the world’s largest comparison shopping engine. During his tenure Bradley was responsible for launching the US Business and expanding it worldwide; entering new verticals; and the overall strategic direction of the company. He developed a strong technological, analytical and entrepreneurial focus on capital efficiency. Bradley played several key roles in the company’s development including President and led several acquisitions. Prior to NexTag, Bradley worked within the Technology sector for more than 10 years, where he held executive positions at public companies in Marketing, Product Management and Business Development. Bradley currently holds board positions with NextPerformance and AcademixDirect, and an executive advisory role with Trademob – all Kennet Portfolio companies; and is an executive advisor to Insidevault.
“Kennet Partners is a dynamic and fastpaced environment. After analyzing many leading edge companies for possible investment, AVA.ai and the team that Ben has built are clearly years ahead of the competition,” stated Bradley. “AVA.ai has the right components for significant expansion and market leadership – by leveraging its cutting-edge AVA Artificial Intelligence technology. I look forward to guiding the company to achieve its potential.”
The AVA (Automated Virtual Assistant) platform engages, nurtures and connects customer leads consistently and persistently, cultivating relationships at each step of the life cycle. Unlike auto-response programs, AVA uses artificial intelligence to interpret responses and take action based upon customer replies, giving each contact context, thereby increasing engagement and results. AVA is like having hundreds of sales people working around the clock, doing the leg work before turning readied and reignited leads over to the sales team.
Having launched in the Automotive industry, AVA.ai is now rapidly expanding into other high-growth customer-centric sectors worldwide. There are currently more than 4,000 sales professionals using AVA to manage and maximize leads within a number of industry-leading companies across multiple verticals.
h2. About AVA.ai
AVA.ai is a fast-growing Internet Technology company, founded in 2007 with offices in Bellingham, WA and San Francisco, CA. With an international presence and more than 4,000 sales professionals in several industries using AVA, the company’s growth has been tremendous and success well-documented. AVA partners with leading industry companies across many verticals who value better lead management. For more information, please visit www.AVA.ai. To schedule a demonstration of AVA, please call 888.633.7738, sign up on the website or email Sales@AVA.ai. For additional press information, email PR@AVA.ai.
h2. About Kennet Partners
Kennet is a leading international growth equity firm that invests in companies in Europe and North America. Kennet supports entrepreneurial technology businesses with expansion capital to accelerate growth and build exceptional shareholder value. Kennet is an experienced investor with approximately $600 million in funds under management. For more information, please visit www.kennet.com. Kennet Partners Limited is authorized and regulated in the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority.
###
Media Contact:
US media inquiries: Javier Rojas, Kennet Partners - Tel: +1 650 573 8700
European media inquiries: Janina Jablonski, Kennet Partners - Tel: +44 20 7839 8020