Real Time Data Mining Firm Taykey Raises $15 Million in New Funding

The real-time data crunching firm Taykey has raised $15 million in new funding as it looks to expand its business from digital media-buying to deeper marketing analytics, said founder and chief executive Amit Avner.

Founded in Israel in 2009, Taykey is now based in New York, where over the past several years it has focused on helping advertisers react to real-time trends by buying ads tied to online conversations that are relevant for their brands.

For instance, if a brand knows its customers are fans of Justin Bieber, and Justin Bieber does something that gets people talking in social media, Taykey could quickly buy ads that would run adjacent to Bieber-related content.

Some car brands have used Taykey’s data and services to run ads targeted to consumers who have been talking about another car brand that is going through a recall.

Other advertisers have used Taykey’s data supply to run ads based on events that are trending in popular culture–like sporting events and award shows. Mr. Avner says that Taykey pulls in data from a thousands of sources, including Google, Facebook and Twitter.

Going forward, Taykey is moving beyond just real-time media buying. It will encourage clients to subscribe to receive access to Taykey’s vast data supply for all aspects of their marketing. For example, advertisers may use Taykey’s insights into what consumers are chattering about online to produce up-t0-the-minute social media posts of their own, or crank out quick topical Web videos. Plus, Mr. Avner believes that Taykey customers will be able to use the software to glean insights on competitors and even make product decisions.

“There are tons of marketing opportunities in real time,” Mr. Avner said. “But data needs to be adaptive and actionable. Brands can’t have a war room all the time for things like the Super Bowl. There are lots of other prime moments that are more fleeting that they can take advantage of.”

Among the companies involved in this funding round are Innovation Endeavors, former Google CEO Eric Schmidt‘s venture arm, Softbank Capital and Sequoia Capital.

By: Mike Shields | The Wall Street Journal
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