Chinese AI start-up Megvii said to plan IPO in either Hong Kong or New York to raise up to US$800 million

Megvii, the developer of facial recognition software Face++ used widely across China, is mulling an initial public offering that could raise up to US$800 million, people familiar with the matter said.

The Beijing-based artificial intelligence start-up is still weighing options to list in either New York or Hong Kong, with the latter more likely at this stage, said the people who did not want to be identified as the information is private.

The company, backed by Alibaba Group Holding and Foxconn Technology among other investors, is looking to raise between US$500 million and US$800 million in the offering. The preliminary offering date is set for July, according to one person familiar with the matter.

A company spokesman declined to comment on its IPO plans.

The IPO could serve as a test for how well China's AI boom will be received by the world's capital markets, with several Chinese facial recognition and surveillance start-ups eyeing potential listings in the coming year. Dubbed the fourth industrial revolution, China wants to push AI into all walks of life, from catching criminals to commercial applications such as self-driving cars and robots that can read medical scans and detect cancer.