Standard Cognition, an AI-powered autonomous checkout startup, has raised an additional $5.5 million in funding from Charles River Ventures (CRV), bringing the total round raised to $11.2 million. The company, which positions itself as a competitor to the Amazon Go checkout free store concept, plans to use the funding to accelerate its global expansion, hire AI and machine vision experts, and kick off initial pilots with global retailers.
The platform only requires light-touch installation via cameras on the store ceiling and can accommodate any existing store layout.The cameras are designed to identify people that walk into a store. Those customers use an app, and the camera identifies everything they are carrying and bills them as they exit the store.
“Pressure from Amazon is forcing retailers to rethink traditional ways of doing business,” said Devdutt Yellurkar, General Partner at CRV, in a statement. “We continue to be impressed with the Standard team, and we think they are on track to be the primary alternative to Amazon Go. We see incredible opportunity in the space, and we’re excited to work with Standard as they deliver autonomous checkout and a deeper understanding of consumer shopping behavior.”
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The company also has appointed two new executives to its management team: Jon Nam as Head of Global Operations and Evan Shiue, Head of Corporate Strategy and Growth. Nam, who has more than 25 years of experience in retail, will be responsible for executing and scaling vast global deployments through strategic partnerships and collaborations. He previously held positions at Macy’s, RetailNext, CNBC and CCIntegration. Shiue has more than 15 years of experience in senior roles across strategy and corporate development at companies including Walmart and PepsiCo.