Event tech
RingCentral acquires Hopin products
ingCentral , Inc . ( NYSE :
R
RNG ), a provider of AI-powered cloud communications and video meetings solutions , has announced the acquisition of select assets from the video meetings platform Hopin .
The acquisition includes technology assets , customer relationships , and engineering , product , Hopin Events and Hopin Session , and go-to-market talent from Hopin to expand RingCentral ’ s video solutions for its customers .
“ We see an opportunity to redefine how video communication is experienced . This acquisition is a key next step in our journey to deliver more personalised and engaging video meetings and events for customers ,” says Vlad Shmunis , founder , and CEO of RingCentral .
The announcement comes only a year after Hopin made headlines for cutting almost 30 % of its staff , following earlier rounds of layoffs a few months prior . The Britishfounded video meetings platform saw immense growth during the pandemic , noting a valuation of $ 7.8bn at the height of Covid-19 measures . However , Hopin ’ s products were sold to RingCentral for only $ 15m .
Allseated raises $ 20m as it scales up and expands
Allseated , a US-based platform that allows venues and organisers to plan and showcase venues virtually , has raised $ 20m in a debt round of funding led by Trinity Capital , with Vestech Partners , NYFF , Magma Ventures and WGG also participating . San Francisco based Nfluence Partners served as financial advisor and Fenwick and West as Legal counsel in the course of the latest fund raising . The new funding will mean Allseated can scale its platform and expand beyond events into corporate use .
Allseated has grown from 40 employees to 120 worldwide and will now spin out its Meetaverse division as a standalone entity .
The Dice event discovery and ticketing platform reflects this new trend also , successfully raising $ 65m recently , while event management software company EventMobi was bold in its acquisition of Run The World , an online events platform . These moves perhaps signal that virtual events are moving to play a more complementary role in the real world of face-to-face meetings .
Hire Space survey shows value of AI
A recent survey conducted by venue marketplace Hire Space has revealed that AI is viewed overwhelmingly positively in the events industry , despite concerns in other industries .
The survey highlighted that two thirds of event organisers feel “ very positive ” about the adoption of AI in events , with the remaining third indicating that they feel “ somewhat positive ” about AI tools being used in event planning . According to Hire Space , responses suggest that there ’ s confidence that AI will support and improve events .
Sian Sayward , chair of UK trade association beam , comments : “ As most of us recognise the benefits of event planning software , many will welcome AI as a further way to improve efficiency and productivity .”
Seventeen percent of respondents were “ somewhat concerned ” about their job security with AI becoming more widely used , with 83 % stating that they were “ not very concerned ”.
Over three quarters of respondents reported using AI tools at least once a month , and 31 % using them daily to streamline their responsibilities .
The company ’ s investment into event tech has seen them launch an instant-booking service and a concierge service , Hire Space 360 .
www . exhibitionworld . co . uk Issue 5 2023 29