UK tech startup Improbable raises $500 mn from Japan’s SoftBank

UK tech startup Improbable has raised $500 million from Japan's SoftBank, in one of the biggest investments in an early stage European technology business.

The five-year-old virtual simulation firm is now valued at over $1 billion, and the new funds will be used for development of Improbable's technology, which made virtual worlds for video games.

''We believe that the next major phase in computing will be the emergence of large-scale virtual worlds, which enrich human experience and change how we understand the real world,'' chief executive Herman Narula said, adding, ''At Improbable we have spent the last few years building the foundational infrastructure for this vision.''

Softbank will receive a "non-controlling" stake in the firm, and according to Improbable, it will now "explore and identify" new potential relationships with Softbank, its partners and portfolio companies.

Deep Nishar, managing director of SoftBank, said breakthrough technologies like Improbable were becoming "vital and valuable platforms", and its vision for the tech was far-reaching.

"Beyond gaming, this new form of simulation on a massive scale has the potential to help us make better decisions about the world we live in. Improbable's technology will help us explore disease, improve cities, understand economies and solve complex problems on a previously unimaginable scale."

According to commentators, the deal was further evidence that the UK's technology sector could now compete with the best.

Improbable was founded by Herman Narula and Rob Whitehead, who had studied computer science together at Cambridge University.

They aimed to build large-scale virtual worlds and simulations - mainly for games developers but also for other clients who could use them in applications such as modelling transport systems.

According to the company, it had developed revolutionary technology with its Spatial OS operating system, which it had opened up to other developers.

"Our vision is to create completely new realities, massive virtual worlds that can change the way we live and work and can impact the way we understand some of the hardest problems," BBC quoted Narula as saying.