East Meet East, a North America based Asian matchmaking service focused on connecting Asian people in the United States, raised 4 million in series A funding, reports TechCrunch.
Among East Meets East’s backers are Asahi Medialab Ventures, Mobile Internet Capital and the DG Lab Fund, a joint venture between Japan’s Digital Garaga and Daiwa Securities. Also backing the dating app is an internet advertising firm, Septeni.
East Meet East recently announced a partnership with DG Lab to use deep learning algorithms to improve user matches.
The service, which was founded in 2014, claims to connect Asian people “looking for someone with a similar cultural background” to the “Asian American & Asian diaspora community,” according to its website.
Critics argue that the application’s model encourages discrimination and propagates traditional gender roles. The service is limited to those of Asian descent, and men must pay to use it while women may register for free.
The company will use the funds to continue developing artificially intelligent matching systems, expand into Asia, launch an additional site, and add more entertainment features to the platform, reports Finesmes.
AsAmNews has Asian America in its heart.  We’re an all-volunteer effort of dedicated staff and interns.  Check out our Facebook page  and our Twitter feed,  Please consider interning, joining our staff or submitting a story for consideration.
