Swiss startup Advertima, an emerging computer vision platform provider, today announces landing a €15 million Series A investment, in a round led by existing shareholder Fortimo Group (a Swiss real estate company). Advertima empowers grocers and other retailers to create smart spaces that offer consumer-centric, frictionless and relevant in-store shopping experiences. The fresh funds will be used to develop the platform on a global scale and strengthen the startup’s position in the smart spaces market.
Using computer vision, machine learning and artificial intelligence, Advertima (2016) has created the ‘Human Data Layer’, which visually interprets human behaviour in physical spaces. By providing a real-time and easily accessible data stream, Advertima enables the smart spaces of the future to interact with people in a seamless and meaningful way.
The first sector that Advertima has set its sights on is grocery retail. In a fast-changing retail world that is quickly adapting to the impact of COVID-19, Advertima’s technology helps fast-track the evolution of grocery retailers. Advertima offers smart inventory management and autonomous checkout while also providing engaging and relevant content on smart digital screens throughout the in-store shopping journey of every customer. By making retail spaces smart, grocers maximise the efficiency of their stores, increase their revenues and generate greater returns per square meter.
Advertima believes that in the near future, smart spaces will be ubiquitous and a part of the fabric of everyday life. Consumers are at the core of the evolution of smart spaces and will expect a living and working environment where interaction with technology is seamless and unnoticeable.
Advertima’s smart retail portfolio has been developed with Switzerland’s largest retailer, Migros and the international grocer SPAR. The technology is already being used by 14 companies across eight different countries.
“It is clear that the rapid digitalisation of our society is going to have an impact on consumer habits, especially in the retail sector,” says Fortimo Group Founder Remo Bienz. “Advertima is at the cutting-edge of technology in the retail space. As a long-standing shareholder, we know how visionary their technology is, but also how it has been successfully adopted by major, global organisations and already generated significant revenues. We’re excited to be part of Advertima’s journey.”
“We’ll be investing €25 million in the further development of our smart retail solutions over the next two years. €10 million of this investment will be financed by our own revenues so this €15 million round is a crucial milestone to help us achieve our vision for how the world will look by 2030,” says Advertima’s co-founder and CEO Iman Nahvi. “We see a world where the physical and digital layers are merged to enhance our daily professional and private lives. Advertima’s Human Data Layer will be one of the irreplaceable components in this whole ecosystem of applications and technologies that will build the foundation of our future lives.”
“Since its founding in 2016, our Swiss start-up has had a global technology vision. This funding round brings our vision nearer to reality,” says Damir Bogdan, Advertima Seed Investor and President of the Board.
