Mitsui & Co., Ltd. ("Mitsui", Head office: Tokyo, President and CEO: Tatsuo Yasunaga), has acquired a stake in LeapMind Inc. ("LeapMind", Head office: Tokyo, CEO: Soichi Matsuda), a provider of solutions for enterprises using deep learning technology, the underlying technology of AI. Mitsui and LeapMind also formed a business alliance agreement. LeapMind will raise ¥3.5 billion in a series C funding round from four companies including Mitsui.

LeapMind has carried out research and development on both software and hardware for the practical implementation of deep learning in environments where power supply and telecommunications are limited. Using LeapMind's proprietary 'extremely low bit quantized deep learning technology' it is possible to operate deep learning on edge devices with various limitations such as low power consumption.

Through its business alliance with LeapMind, Mitsui intends to accelerate the social implementation of LeapMind's proprietary technology. By collaborating and promoting business development, the two companies will contribute to solving social issues such as the declining birthrate, aging population and labor force reduction, as well as productivity improvement and QoL improvement, where there are high hopes for the utilization of DX (Digital Transformation).