Company:Caper AI

From HandWiki
Caper AI
TypePrivately held company
IndustryRetail software, AI technologies in retail
Founded2016
HeadquartersNew York, USA
Area served
USA and Canada[1]
Key people
Lindon Gao (CEO), York Yang, Yilin Huang, Ahmed Beshry[1][2][3]
ServicesAutonomous checkout software
Websitewww.caper.ai

Caper AI (alternatively known as Caper) is a software technology company that develops and deploys AI-powered automated checkout devices[4] as well as AI-based software applications[5][6] for retailers, grocers, convenience stores and other general merchandising store formats.[1][7][8] Caper AI was established in 2016 by Lindon Gao, York Yang, Yilin Huang and Ahmed Beshry. It is headquartered in Manhattan, NY.[9]

History

The company was founded in 2016 by Lindon Gao, York Yang, Yilin Huang and Ahmed Beshry[2] with its main office based out of New York.[10] Since its inception, the company focused on the development of automated checkout software to grocery retailers. Caper AI closed its series A round of funding for US$10 million in 2019.[10][11] In 2019, Sobeys, the second-largest food retailer in Canada, publicly announced about commercial deployment of the Caper's Smart Cart technology with its first location being at Glen Abbey Sobeys supermarket in Oakville, Ontario.[8][12] As Grocery Dive notes, "The novel coronavirus pandemic has accelerated the deployment of programs that help shoppers get in and get out from stores as quickly as possible".[9][13] According to Wall Street Journal and Washington Post, Caper's technology started to roll out in the US and Canada grocery stores in 2019.[1][9] The deployments include Foodcellar & Co.,[12] C-town, Met Fresh Market, Pioneer Supermarkets, Gala Fresh Farms and Brooklyn Fare, among others.[8] In autumn 2020, the company introduced Caper Counter, a cashierless countertop for small grocery stores under 10 000 sq feet and fewer than 10K SKUs with a software applying machine learning algorithms, computer vision and Sensor Fusion technology.[14][15][16][17]

In 2020, one of the largest American chain retailer Kroger launched "KroGo" AI-powered shopping carts, developed by Caper AI. The pilot program was introduced at one of its stores in Cincinnati, Ohio.[4][18][19][20]

Technology

Caper AI uses several technologies to automate the retail checkout process, including computer vision, machine learning and sensor fusion. Caper’s technology has multiple cameras and lights to capture images. AI and deep learning are used to pre-train the system to recognize products within the stores [7][10][21] The technology can recognize products that are similar or identical by differentiating between them based on textual information and size. [7][8]

See also

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "How A.I. Is Making Supermarkets Less Exhausting". The Wall Street Journal. https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-a-i-is-making-supermarkets-less-exhausting-11551387197. 
  2. 2.0 2.1 "These smart shopping carts will let you skip the grocery store line". CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/23/tech/smart-shopping-cart/index.html. 
  3. "Caper Cofounders". Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/profile/caper/?sh=7bcb23bd57d0. 
  4. 4.0 4.1 "Kroger Is Testing A New Smart Cart That Lets Shoppers Skip The Checkout Line". Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurendebter/2021/01/19/kroger-is-testing-a-new-smart-cart-that-lets-shoppers-skip-the-checkout-line/?sh=79e812636339. 
  5. "This shopping cart knows what you're buying". CNN Business. https://www.cnn.com/videos/business/2019/12/20/caper-ai-shopping-cart-orig.cnn-business/video/playlists/business-artificial-intelligence/. 
  6. "Caper CEO Looks to Cut the Checkout Line with 'Smart Shopping Cart'". Cheddar. https://cheddar.com/media/caper-ceo-looks-to-cut-the-checkout-line-with-smart-shopping-cart. 
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 "To Beat Amazon At Its Own Game, Retailers Are Turning To Caper, The AmazonGo Experience In A Cart". Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/brittainladd/2019/01/17/introducing-caper-the-amazongo-experience-in-a-grocery-cart/?sh=259f4ea4efad. 
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 "Sobeys tests smart shopping cart that scans and checks out". https://www.supermarketnews.com/retail-financial/sobeys-tests-smart-shopping-cart-scans-and-checks-out. 
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 "Tired of long lines? A Canadian grocery chain debuts Smart Carts with self-checkout". The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/10/25/tired-long-lines-canadian-grocery-chain-debuts-smart-carts-with-self-checkout/. 
  10. 10.0 10.1 10.2 "Meet Caper, the AI self-checkout shopping cart". TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2019/01/10/caper-shopping-cart/?guccounter=1. 
  11. "Smart cart company Caper raises $10M in Series A funding". RetailDive. https://www.retaildive.com/news/smart-cart-company-caper-raises-10m-in-series-a-funding/562981/. 
  12. 12.0 12.1 "The Smart Shopping Cart is here thanks to AI". Abasto. https://abasto.com/en/news/the-smart-shopping-cart-is-here-thanks-to-caper-ai/. 
  13. "Smart carts get a charge from Amazon and COVID-19". GroceryDive. https://www.grocerydive.com/news/smart-carts-get-a-charge-from-amazon-and-covid-19/583959/. 
  14. "Caper debuts AI-driven self-checkout solution". Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/caper-launches-streamlined-self-checkout-technology-2020-10. 
  15. "Contactless checkout: Why it's coming to the bodega before the chain store". ZDNet. https://www.zdnet.com/article/contactless-checkout-why-its-coming-to-the-bodega-before-the-chain-store/. 
  16. "Caper Launches Frictionless Checkout Counter for C-Stores". CSP Daily News. https://www.cspdailynews.com/technologyservices/caper-launches-frictionless-checkout-counter-c-stores. 
  17. "Caper's New Counter Device Gives Cashierless Checkout to Convenience Stores". The Spoon. https://thespoon.tech/capers-new-counter-device-gives-cashierless-checkout-to-convenience-stores/. 
  18. "Kroger tests 'smart' shopping cart from Caper". Supermarket News. https://www.supermarketnews.com/technology/kroger-tests-smart-shopping-cart-caper. 
  19. "Kroger Using Smart Shopping Carts Powered by Caper". The Spoon. https://thespoon.tech/kroger-using-smart-shopping-carts-powered-by-caper/. 
  20. "Kroger launches smart shopping cart pilot with Caper to expand in-store digital solutions". Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/kroger-tests-caper-smart-shopping-carts-to-expand-digital-solutions-2021-1. 
  21. "Are Smart Shopping Carts the Future of Food Shopping?". Cheddar. https://cheddar.com/media/are-smart-shopping-carts-the-future-of-food-shopping.