AI start-up Betterview secures $4.5m funding from ManchesterStory, Maiden Re, Nationwide

California-based artificial intelligence (AI) start-up Betterview, an insurtech platform provider for property transactions, has closed a $4.5 million Series A round bringing the  total funding to $10 million.

The investment was led by insurtech venture capital firm ManchesterStory, with participation from Nationwide Ventures, EMC Insurance, Maiden Re and Compound.

Additionally, Dave Miles, managing partner of ManchesterStory, and Brian Desmond, CMO of Guidewire Software, have joined Betterview’s board of directors.

Founded in 2014 by technology and insurance entrepreneurs David Lyman and Dave Tobias, Betterview started off as a drone-based property inspection platform and service. In 2018, the company launched its risk management platform, which leverages machine learning, computer vision and geospatial data to deliver data, analysis and insights on commercial and residential properties throughout the US.

“We are pleased to announce the close of our Series A round. We have been putting this capital to great use by growing our team, including three new hires on our Data Science team,” said Lyman, CEO & co-founder of Betterview.

“Betterview is also extremely fortunate to have Dave Miles and Brian Desmond join our Board of Directors. Dave
knows the InsureTech space inside and out, and Brian has been instrumental in scaling Guidewire from a startup to the insurance industry’s leading software company over the past thirteen years,” he added.

Dave Miles, manager partner of ManchesterStory, said: “We are always looking to partner with market-leading companies in the InsureTech space. With over 70 million commercial and residential properties in the United States, insurers need to aggregate dozens of structured and unstructured data sources in order to gain a better understanding of these properties.

"Betterview addresses a significant need for P&C insurers through its proprietary application of machine learning and computer vision to generate actionable information, so insurers can quickly and more accurately assess and price risk, creating a better experience for their customers."