Sony Innovation Fund (SIF) is the venture capital arm of Sony Group Corporation and is dedicated to investing in and engaging with promising early-stage & growth-stage companies. Based in Silicon Valley as a core member of Sony Innovation Fund (SIF) since its inception, Ludovic leads startup scouting, due diligence, venture investment execution as well as portfolio management in many core SIF focus areas such as Mobility, FinTech, InsurTech, web3, PropTech, Drones, FoodTech, AgTech and Environment.Led investments in Arkose Labs, Truepic, Covr, Superpedestrian, Token, Cruz Foam, Iris Automation, Matternet, Delos, Sight Machine, Ridecell, Miles, Magic Cube, Botrista, Analytical Flavor Systems, Plunk, Sentera, Waffle and several other undisclosed ones.

Cruz Foam produces bio-benign foam and eco-friendly EPS-alternative solutions that power key industry leaders to be the catalyst for a cleaner environment. Cruz Foam’s patent-pending products are produced using an all-natural seafood industry waste material that creates a scalable, compostable alternative using the existing supply chain and at a similar cost. Current industry partners include consumer-packaged goods, consumer electronics, and B2B shipping.

Founded in 2015, Truepic develops the world's most secure camera technology for mobile devices. Truepic is the pioneer of secure media provenance through its patented Controlled Capture technology, which empowers viewers to make better-informed decisions through high integrity photos & videos. The Truepic team is dedicated to restoring trust in every pixel of consequence, with the goal of having a shared sense of visual reality across the internet.

Botrista provides beverage solutions to foodservice operators by leveraging easy-to-use equipment (the DrinkBot) alongside a line of pre-packaged ingredients (BiBs) to deliver a variety of craft beverages, including infused teas & lattes, flavored lemonades, iced coffees and more!Botrista enables brands to add a mini-cafe to their menu without the operational complexities.Operators can now offer high margin items without the investment in a full bar. Our system takes up just 5-sq ft and enables customizable drink recipes at the touch of a button. We automate the portioning, dispensing and mixing process to deliver a fresh and consistently blended product in under 20 seconds.

Arkose Labs bankrupts the business model of fraud. Its patented platform combines Arkose Detect, a sophisticated risk engine, with Arkose Enforce, which uses targeted step-up challenges to wear fraudsters down and diminish their ROI. The world’s largest brands trust Arkose Labs to protect their customer journey while delivering unrivaled user experiences. Arkose Labs is based in San Francisco, Calif., with offices in Brisbane, Australia.

Web3 Blockchain Infrastructure for Video, Media & Entertainment.

At Oishii, we grow the best fruit in the world by deploying ground-breaking vertical farming technology that pushes the boundaries of agriculture. We’re the first in the world to grow fruit in an indoor vertical farm at commercial scale. We started with strawberries, which we debuted at Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare, the three star Michelin restaurant considered by critics to be among the best in the world. Since then, we have supplied our strawberries to food-loving consumers, world-class restaurants, and specialty retailers across NYC. Our proprietary technology, developed through years of intensive research in Japan and the US, enables us to grow the very best produce year-round, at the same high level of quality, all without using any pesticides. We have rapidly expanded our farm facilities and assembled a world-class team with backgrounds spanning vertical farming, industrial automation, farm operations, and data analysis.

Ridecell empowers new mobility operators, including OEMs, car rental companies, auto clubs, cities, transit agencies, dealer groups, and private fleets to launch, expand, and maximize the utilization of their own ridesharing and carsharing services. Headquartered in San Francisco, the company provides an intelligent software platform that runs new mobility services such as carsharing, ridesharing, and autonomous fleet management. End-to-end integration and automation accelerate time to market, enabling Ridecell customers to launch mobility services quickly, operate efficiently, and scale revenues as business grows.

Covr partners with financial brands to provide life insurance solutions to their customers in an efficient, easy way that streamlines the process of selling and buying policies. Covr offers a choice of trusted life insurance products from leading insurance carriers, an easy way to compare rates, and the ability to purchase policies within minutes. Through its white label solutions, Covr helps financial institutions deliver a great experience under an existing brand their customers already trust. Covr currently serves over 25,000 financial advisors and over 20 million customers across over 30 financial institutions.

Born at MIT and raised in New York, Waffle is an all-in-one consumer InsurTech solution that meets all of your insurance needs in one easy-to-use platform. Available in all 50 States, Waffle provides customers nationwide with top-rated insurance products many of which have limited to no exclusions. Investors include Sony Innovation Fund, Barclays, BetterLabs Ventures, Verve Ventures, Techstars, and others. To learn more, please visit www.waffleinsurance.com.

Sentera’s mission is to deliver time-sensitive agricultural insights that optimize decisions and improve outcomes. Our integrated software, sensors, drones, and analytics products make it easy to integrate in-field data insights with the digital ag platforms in use by more than 80% of growers and their advisors in North America.FieldAgent® by Sentera delivers in-season data, analytics, and insights to thousands of customers and millions of acres of land throughout the world via web, mobile, desktop, and API connection. Growers, agronomists, seed retailers, and supply chain managers use insights from our platform to improve the precision, efficiency, and sustainability of their businesses. Sentera strives to build an indispensable platform for understanding the story of a field.

Token is an open banking payments platform driving the shift from traditional payment methods to bank payments with best-in-class, Pan-European bank connectivity, data and compliance capabilities. With Token’s complete toolkit, merchants, PSPs and banks create new capabilities and revenue streams through our broadest, Pan-European connectivity to over 3,000 banks. Token is both bank and developer-friendly, and multi-standard by design.

PreAct Technologies aims to bridge the gap between collision avoidance systems and active safety technology. Every millisecond matters before a crash, and our patent-pending suite of sensor technologies, computing systems and unique countermeasure algorithms aim to drastically reduce fatalities and injuries in a crash. PreAct Technologies leverages existing vehicle infrastructure to predict and prepare both a vehicle and its occupants for an imminent collision. This alone can reduce a majority of injuries from the most common types of crashes while saving the industry billions annually.

Analytical Flavor Systems is a predictive analytics company for the consumer packaged goods and food & beverage industries.AFS is a specialized machine learning and artificial intelligence platform that models sensory perception to predict consumer preferences, market trends, and product performance. Our software as a service (SaaS) products create real-time predictions that are used in the development of new and re-optimization of existing food & beverage products.We collect data and develop machine learning models that predict current and future consumer preferences to optimize every step in a food or beverage product’s life cycle - from conception to consumption.Gastrograph AI is the first SaaS platform to understand and capture the human sensory perception of flavor, aroma, and texture. AFS helps make data-based decisions and creates better brands and better products.

MagicCube is a device independent IoT security platform that protects against on-device, cloud, and network attacks. The MagicCube solution secures digital transactions on any device, in transit, and in the cloud with the same level of security as device hardware solutions without the complexity and cost associated with hardware deployments.

Delos brings together the best innovations in technology, health, design and science to improve human health in the built environment. As the pioneer of Wellness Real Estate™, Delos is transforming our homes, offices, schools and other indoor environments by placing health and wellness at the center of design and construction decisions. Delos helps create spaces that actively contribute to human health, performance and well-being by marrying the best innovations in technology, health, science and real estate. The Delos platform includes programming, consulting, research and an array of innovative products and technologies that research suggests may improve occupant well-being.

Sight Machine is used by Global 500 companies to make better, faster decisions about their manufacturing operations. Sight Machine’s analytics platform, purpose-built for discrete and process manufacturing, uses artificial intelligence, machine learning, and advanced analytics to help address critical challenges in quality and productivity throughout the enterprise.The platform is powered by the industry’s only Plant Digital Twin, which enables real-time visibility and actionable insights for every machine, line, and plant throughout an enterprise.

Miles is a universal rewards app empowering anyone to earn miles automatically for all forms of travel and commute.Similar to a frequent flyer program, but for all forms of transportation, Miles delivers value for every mile traveled, across every mode of travel, anywhere in the world. Whether by car (as a driver, passenger or rideshare), plane, train, subway, bus, boat, bicycle, or on foot, the Miles app effortlessly awards users’ travel - regardless of where their journey takes them.

Matternet is the developer of the world’s leading technology platform for on-demand drone delivery in urban environments. The company provides its technology platform as a service to healthcare, e-commerce and logistics organizations.

Creating and achieving mid- and long-term strategy through strategic partnerships with & investments into innovative start-ups.Focusing on disruptive ecosystems and highly-impacting fields for Sony, notably:• Artificial Intelligence (AI)• Automotive (Car Connectivity, Autonomous Driving, ADAS, V2V/V2I, Heads-up Displays...)• Smart Machines (Drones/UAVs, Robotics, Factory/Industrial Automation...)• Financial Technologies (FinTech)• Insurance Technologies (InsurTech)• Education Technologies (EdTech)• Agriculture Technologies (AgTech)• Security (DRM, Biometrics, Bitcoin & Blockchain...)• Imaging (Semiconductors, Materials, Software/Cloud processing...)• Entertainment (Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), 3D Printing, Toys & Transmedia...)• Telecommunications (5G/beyond LTE, Mesh Networking, SDN, NFV...)Working closely with business units spanning the entire Sony Group portfolio to identify opportunities, source deals, drive evaluations and shape investment/partnership/collaboration use-cases.Identifying & analyzing emerging and new business trends, innovation as well as Intellectual Property (IP) opportunities.Optimizing Offensive and Defensive IP portfolio strategies (cross-licensing, patent-pooling, litigation...) together with IP teams in US, Japan, Europe and China.

Fueling IP footprint through front-line negotiation in key areas (e.g. LTE, DRM, Connected Vehicles, Semiconductors).Acting as window function for IP and software-related license matters for next-generation connected consumer devices. Highlights include evaluation of mid/long-term licensing opportunities of Sony's portfolio in unexplored areas and internal seeding of disruptive trends in Cloud/online services. Empowering group-wide standardization, 3rd-party lobbying and technology promotion around Sony’s core electronics assets. Involvement in multiple on-going IP assertion initiatives or defense negotiations.

Supported Sony’s pro-active IP strategy by fostering future IP execution, such as on wireless and connected TV. Identified next target areas and technologies for IP filling, acquisition, and joint ventures to maximize new revenue generation.Reinforced research outcomes, mid or long-term opportunity assessments and valuations at worldwide, regional and local levels.

Accelerated IP licensing, involving in tactical deal negotiations together with M&A and Legal teams.Structured directions and transversal brainstorming on software platforms, cloud computing and next wave B2B/B2C services.Bridged media-related activities in Music and Pictures businesses with long-tail technology, start-up and ecosystem trends.Catalyzed corporate projects (e.g. advisory board, business risk continuity…) and other special initiatives to Top management.

Managed mid-term intelligence, with overall responsibility for fixed & mobile broadband strategies across all Europe.Oversaw techno-economic analysis platform on network infrastructures, service developments, and key players’ profiles.Researched emerging disruptions such as LTE, femtocells, Web 3.0, semantics, augmented reality and cloud gaming.Evangelized to senior management (e.g. Tokyo HQ, Business Groups, Corporate R&D, Product Planning).

Analyzed Broadcast (Digital TV, HD) and Broadband (IPTV, Catch-up TV, mobile TV) innovations in Western Europe. Synthesized the technological, regulatory, market and competition trends, and their transversal impact for Sony.Developed joint use-cases with key European telecommunications operators, broadcasters and start-ups.

Superpedestrian is a transportation robotics company located in Cambridge, MA. Founded out of MIT in 2013, Superpedestrian develops technologies for micro-electric vehicles that optimize safety, reliability, and performance. Superpedestrian spent over 4 years developing its proprietary Vehicle Intelligence System (VIS), which was first introduced in the company’s consumer product, the Copenhagen Wheel. Since 2018, Superpedestrian has focused its efforts on engineering and validating its new electric scooter for shared fleets. In 2020, the company launched its vehicles under the brand name LINK. Featuring the mature VIS platform, Superpedestrian’s fleet scooter can detect and protect against more than 100 common malfunctions. This platform of embedded computers and cloud software enables Superpedestrian’s scooters to autonomously protect from damage during and between rides. Within nanoseconds, the scooters can detect potential problems such as battery fires, short circuits, or failed brakes, and take corrective action to avert damage. Vehicle Intelligence prevents over 50% of issues that would cause other scooters to fail, and streamlines operations if issues arise. If the scooter can’t protect itself, it automatically becomes unavailable for rental and generates a detailed service ticket for repair. The result is a substantial improvement in vehicle safety for scooter riders and major cost savings for fleet operators. Superpedestrian is re-engineering micromobility, one vehicle at a time.

Plunk is the first mobile app using AI and machine-learning to help you make the best financial decisions and grow your home’s value. Get real-time, data-driven insights, and personalized recommendations on the best ways to improve your home, project by project. Plunk also offers a new home renovation loan, which makes financing major remodeling projects simpler, faster and smarter.

Zoomcar is India’s largest self drive urban mobility platform. Starting with Zoomcar (India’s first self drive car sharing service) in 2013, the company recently launched PEDL, India’s first technology enabled cycle sharing service.Zoomcar has a presence in 27 cities with a fleet of over 3,000 vehicles and 20+ models while PEDL is operational across 6 cities with more than 3,000 cycles. In 2017, Zoomcar launched ZAP which is India’s first and largest fractional sharing platform for car owners to share their car when it’s not in use, thereby helping to offset their monthly fixed cost burden.

Iris Automation is a safety avionics technology company pioneering Detect-and-Avoid systems and aviation policy services that enable customers to build scalable Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations for commercial drones; operations that unlock the potential of countless industries.

StrongArm is the world's leading safety science company, capturing, analyzing and delivering actionable insights that drive worker safety and enterprise value. Utilizing complex smart sensors and machine learning StrongArm can effectively develop, manufacture and deploy the next generation of industrial safety equipment. Ensuring the backbone of our economy - the Industrial Athlete - is Proud, Protected and Productive.

Consolidated the business model for a multi-channel IPTV/Video on Demand portal and virtual shopping center.Reported technology and strategy choices for delivering A/V entertainment to home users through Fiber-to-the-Home.

Benchmarked e-Learning platforms and content aggregation tools to optimize the corporate university’s offering.Deployed an open collaboration module and integrated advanced Key Performance Indicators.

Supervised large-scale summer events as part of an international team (American and Japanese).Conducted enhancements for the renowned center’s infrastructures.

Beta-tested on several platforms the newly designed version of the 1D simulation software AMESim.Optimized the physical models of various library components for use in complex mechatronic systems.