Data analytics company Dataminr has raised $85 million in a combination of convertible financing and credit, the company announced on Wednesday. This new funding comes despite the company's recent layoffs and controversy surrounding its surveillance technology.

The $85 million round, led by security-focused VC NightDragon and HSBC, is a relatively small amount compared to Dataminr's previous $475 million round in 2021, which valued the company at $4.1 billion. However, CEO Ted Bailey emphasized that the new capital will allow Dataminr to accelerate its growth trajectory and provide investors with a discount to the IPO price or subsequent round of financing.

According to Bailey, the company plans to use this new funding to expand its international go-to-market in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, as well as to power additional products in new verticals. This expansion is crucial for Dataminr, which has already established a strong presence in the US market, serving over 800 customers, including two-thirds of the Fortune 50 and 1,500 newsrooms.

Dataminr's technology monitors real-time events around the world, providing tools designed to aid in response to crisis situations. The company's AI algorithms can crawl through text, images, videos, audio, and sensor data to generate event briefs. This technology has been used by the US Department of Defense, NATO, and OpenAI, among others.

Despite its success, Dataminr has faced controversy over its surveillance technology. Reports have emerged that the company provided social media surveillance on lawful, pro-abortion rights protests to the U.S. Marshals, and that police departments used Dataminr services for surveillance during Black Lives Matter protests. Additionally, the company has been accused of getting critical facts wrong, such as the status of American servicemembers in Western Iraq.

In response to these allegations, Dataminr has stated that it's constantly improving its technology and doesn't offer functionality that would allow a customer to pinpoint a person's – or protestor's – location on a map. Bailey emphasized that Dataminr's AI tech steers corporate security across the federal government, OpenAI, humanitarian missions at the United Nations, and security at the world's biggest events, including the Super Bowl and Olympics.

Prior to this new financing round, Dataminr had raised $1.1 billion in venture capital and debt, according to Crunchbase. The company's ability to secure funding despite its controversies is a testament to its unique technology and strong market presence.

As Dataminr looks to expand internationally, it will be interesting to see how the company addresses the controversy surrounding its technology and whether it can maintain its growth trajectory. One thing is certain – Dataminr's AI platform has established itself as a leader in the data analytics space, and its continued growth will have significant implications for the industry.