AI privacy startup Mine raises $3 million to help users ask companies to delete their data

• AI startup Mine scans user emails to uncover which companies have their data - then lets them take it back at the click of a button.
• The "right to be forgotten" has been in place throughout Europe since 2014, with Google having received more than 2 million requests since 2014.
• The $3 million seed round was led by Saban Ventures and Battery Ventures, the latter of which previously invested in cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase.
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Mine, an AI startup allowing users to take ownership of their personal data, has launched after raising $3 million in an investment seed round led by Battery Ventures.

Since 2014, EU data protection rules have allowed individuals to ask organisations to delete their personal information, including phone numbers, dates of birth and email addresses. Google has been among those most impacted by this "right to be forgotten", with 2.4 million people submitting requests in just four years.

The Mine app works by using what the company calls "non-intrusive" machine learning algorithms, which root out the companies flooding your inbox with promotions or other sign-up material.

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Users are then presented with a list of corporations which currently hold their personal information, and can then send them an email requesting that their data be deleted with the click of a button.

"We are entering a decade where people are increasingly concerned with how intrusive everyday apps and platforms have become," said Gal Ringel, co-founder and CEO.

"Therefore, we decided to invest our efforts into building a solution that will provide consumers with a real choice about who gets to keep their data and how it's used. We are kickstarting the future of data ownership."

The funding round was led by VC firms Saban Ventures and Battery Ventures.

In October last year, the firm was chosen by tech giant Intel as one of 160 startups to join its "Ignite" accelerator scheme, a 20-week program offering pre-seed startups hands-on mentorship.

Itzik Parnafes, general partner at Battery Ventures, said: "Understanding the problem is half of the solution… Mine has developed a tool that both illustrates your digital presence and allows you to take control. Battery Ventures is proud to have partnered with Mine to drive this revolution."

David Hoffman, global privacy officer at Intel, said Mine was solving "one of the most urgent issues in privacy".

He added: "Intel believes privacy is a fundamental human right and technologies like Mine play a critical role with legislation in realising the promise of optimising for the ethical and innovative use of data."

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