Standard Cognition, the company that makes artificial intelligence-powered autonomous checkout for retailers, announced on Monday (Jan. 7) that it has acquired Explorer.ai, which makes mapping and computer vision technology.
In a press release, Standard Cognition said that as part of the deal, which was undisclosed, the company will bring on a team of seven experienced AI engineers and mapping technology experts, which will accelerate the company’s launch of autonomous checkout solutions.
“We are thrilled to join forces with the Explorer team,” said Jordan Fisher, co-founder and CEO of Standard, in the press release announcing the deal. “The team is highly experienced and already works well together – having them in place gives our engineering team a big edge and a running start toward applying their state-of-the-art computer vision and mapping skill sets in autonomous vehicles (AV) to retail. We believe mapping is a critical ingredient to autonomous checkout. The Explorer team has a strong record of tackling these problems together, and we’re confident that this will allow us to make rapid progress at Standard.”
Standard’s autonomous checkout solution relies on cameras installed on the ceilings to determine what is in the store, the location of customers and which items they have. The AI system, which is available to any retailer, lets customers shop and pay without having to scan items or wait in line at checkout. Indoor mapping from Explorer.ai will compress a process that took hours down to minutes and help Standard map larger stores, the company said in the press release.
“Explorer’s technology can have a huge impact on Standard’s growth and success, and that’s the main reason we decided to accept their offer over others we received,” said Akshay Goel, co-founder of Explorer.ai, in the press release. “Our goal from Explorer’s inception was to make a big impact in autonomous technology, and combining our forces with Standard’s allows us to do that. We’re really excited for this new adventure.”
In December, Standard announced it had raised $40 million in a Series A round of fundraising.
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