UK – Logically, a Brighouse, Yorkshire, UK-base dtech startup using AI to detect misinformation and to provide a fact-checking service to combat fake news, raised £2.5m in funding.
Backers included NPIF – Mercia Equity Finance, which is managed by Mercia and is part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund, and XTX Ventures – the venture capital affiliate of XTX Markets, a global algorithmic trading firm. The company intends to use the funds to further develop its product in time for the US election. Founded in 2017 by Lyric Jain, a graduate of both Cambridge and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Logically uses a team of dedicated fact-checkers alongside artificial intelligence (AI) and digital forensics to analyse media stories and conspiracy theories to help the public separate facts from falsehoods. It can also track sources of disinformation. Logically has a free app for consumers and also works with governments, news organisations and social media platforms to help prevent misinformation. It has already been used in the Indian general and regional elections last year, in which it detected over 130,000 pieces of problematic content. It has now secured contracts in the USA with public sector and social media platforms to report on the forthcoming elections. The company now employs 15 staff in Yorkshire and a similar number in London. 13/07/2020
