Silicon Valley AI firm HyperVerge expands to the Philippines

Silicon Valley, California-based artificial intelligence firm HyperVerge is expanding its global operations to the Philippines.

In a statement on Tuesday, HyperVerge said it views the country as the new growth center in the Southeast Asian region.

Citing the latest State of Finance App Marketing report of AppsFlyer, the company said the overall demand for financial technology (fintech) apps in the Philippines soared by 68% in the past year.

The pandemic accelerated the adoption of digital solutions for everyday tasks from work to distance learning.

HyperVerge said it hopes to support this growth momentum through its deep-learning networks.

The company empowers enterprises with artificial intelligence (AI) solutions that enable them to improve and automate their processes, provide a better customer experience, and digitally adapt at a quicker pace.

“The Philippines is fast becoming the new growth center in Southeast Asia and we want to be part of that story while also helping accelerate it much faster. We see a huge opportunity to use our technology in a meaningful way, especially in supporting the government’s initiatives for financial inclusion,” HyperVerge CEO Kedar Kulkarni said.

Over 70% of the country remains unbanked and more and more Filipinos rely on fintech services for their daily needs with local lockdowns enforced and contactless transactions preferred in the so-called “new normal.”

“We are best positioned to support various industries, especially the finance and telecom sectors, with our technology, which simplifies the complex structure of AI, and processes millions of images, videos, and documents, to verify and ensure legitimacy,” HyperVerge co-founder Praveen Kumar said.

HyperVerge said it enables financial institutions to reduce risks related to fraud and identity theft while maintaining the efficient processing of documents and services.

The company added that it had helped lenders in different territories in India, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, and the United States to save $50 million from fraud annually.

"We want to help Filipinos gain more access to financial services, and our technology creates an information ecosystem that makes it easier for lenders to verify the information and detect fraudsters from the get-go," Kumar said.

Globally, HyperVerge’s roster of clients includes established companies like CIMB, Home Credit, SquidPay, State Bank Of India, and Grab.

HyperVerge is also backed by investors such as New Enterprise Associates, Milliways Ventures, and Dallas Venture Capital.

“We continue to build the necessary infrastructure to enable institutions to collaborate in stopping fraud and strengthening their processes. Currently, we are working with three large financial institutions in the Philippines and we are keen on expanding our footprint moving forward,” Kumar said. — DVM, GMA News