Sprout Solutions, a B2B SaaS and HR tech startup in the Philippines, has announced its acquisition of artificial intelligence company Aiah AI for an undisclosed amount.
Aiah AI, which has offices in the Philippines and Singapore, automates recurring business processes to increase productivity among companies, allowing these firms to focus on higher-value activities.
It provides a robotic platform that automates repetitive tasks in desktop applications and digitizes transactions in the procure-to-pay process, according to the announcement.
In September last year, Sprout Solutions, founded by husband-and-wife duo Patrick and Alex Gentry in 2015, announced that it was acquiring AI and process automation platform Linnia from Aiah for an undisclosed amount.
Sprout said the acquisition of Aiah AI will allow the company to generate more insight and analysis for its clients and further increase the accessibility and efficiency of its platform of HR and payroll management.
“The acquisition of Aiah AI to embrace artificial intelligence in the HR and payroll industry is not just a matter of staying ahead, it’s about redefining the way organizations manage their workforce,” said Patrick Gentry, CEO of Sprout Solutions.
The acquisition comes as Southeast Asian countries are the least prepared in the Asia-Pacific region for the upcoming challenges of workplace automation, according to a Deloitte report in 2021.
A separate survey conducted by Sprout also showed that securing upper management support for digital transformation initiatives is crucial for businesses of all sizes to stay ahead in today’s challenging climate.
The company said its acquisition of Aiah AI aims to help these businesses further improve their ability to make better-informed decisions in order to enhance their HR processes.
In the Philippines, businesses are required to file employee taxes, social security contributions, as well as corresponding reports, which is considered a pain point for businesses.
The complete acquisition of Aiah AI comes about three months after Sprout Solutions raised about $10.7 million in a funding round led by investment firm Cercano Management as part of the startup’s Series B funding round. SoftBank Ventures Asia and GSR Ventures also participated in the said fundraising.
In 2019, Sprout raised $6 million in a Series A funding round led by global venture capital firm Point72 Ventures.