Online ad network Rocket Fuel launches ahead with $6.6M

Online ad network Rocket Fuel announced today that it has raised $6.6 million in funding.

Founded by former executives from NASA, Yahoo! and DoubleClick, Rocket Fuel uses social, behavioral, contextual, geographical, and search data to target display advertisements to customers. The company says it uses technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, and statistics to figure out the best placement for advertisements.

According to chief executive George John, several other ad optimizers look at user behavior, but Rocket Fuel looks at behavior, context, geography, demographics, and more. The service also provides companies immediate feedback on performance.

Currently the company has a customer base of more than 300 major global brands, including eight of the top 10 AdAge Leading National Advertisers and eight of the top 10 Interbrand Most Valuable Brands.

The online ad market is popular right now, with ad optimization companies Legolas Media and TidalTV both raising money within the past month. Rocket Fuel’s latest round of investment values the company at $160 million.

The funding was led by Northgate Capital and also included participation by existing Rocket Fuel investors Mohr Davidow Ventures, Labrador Capital Fund, Nokia Growth Partners and Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati.

Founded in 2009, Rocket Fuel has over 90 employees. The new round brings Rocket Fuel’s total funding to $26.6 million.