Funding

Anyvision Closes $74 Million Series A Funding

NEW YORK — AnyVision, a computer vision company specializing in face, body, and object-recognition software, announced the close of a $74 million Series A financing round. New investment comes from M12, Microsoft’s venture fund, DFJ Growth and OG Technology Partners. Anyvision is based in Israel with U.S. headquarters in NYC.

As part of the Series A, AnyVision previously announced investment from LightSpeed Venture Partners, Robert Bosch GmbH, Qualcomm Ventures, and Eldridge Industries.

AnyVision, founded in 2015, is a computer vision company specializing in face, body, and object-recognition software. AnyVision develops core software solutions that make all cameras smart. These solutions are agnostic to all cameras, computing frameworks, and use-cases.

The company has more than 240 employees globally, with offices in Tel Aviv, New York, Mexico, London, and Singapore, and a dedicated team of over 30 PhDs in Belfast focused solely on computer vision research.

“There are very few times in business when you have the opportunity to build an entirely new industry alongside leading ecosystem players,” said Eylon Etshtein, CEO and Co-Founder of AnyVision. “We are fortunate to have the backing of chipmakers like Qualcomm, camera manufacturers such as Bosch, and now cloud service providers like Microsoft through M12’s investment. We have the optimal combination of industrial validation and financial horsepower to become the leader in this industry.”

“Our mission at DFJ Growth is to back disruptive innovators addressing large, emerging market opportunities. We believe AnyVision has clearly separated itself as a leader in the high-growth market for computer vision, supported by glowing customers reviews praising how AnyVision’s products are improving safety and customer experience,” said Sam Fort, Partner at DFJ Growth. “We have also been impressed with AnyVision’s leadership in driving privacy and ethics standards for the use of recognition technology. We look forward to working with AnyVision to help them accelerate their rapid growth.”

AnyVision currently develops technology for security and surveillance, mobile authentication, access control, and real-world analytics. These core solutions are being utilized today across various industries including banks, stadiums, casinos and retail to improve safety, realize cost savings, and increase customer satisfaction. The new funding will be used to continue growing the company’s existing geographies and industry verticals.

AnyVision places a top priority on privacy and ethical use of recognition technology. Regarding privacy, AnyVision’s technology does not collect or share user data, nor does it capture images. The data captured is rendered in the form of mathematical vectors which act as unbreakable cryptography and prevent identity hacking. AnyVision believes that a truly effective solution is only as valuable as the way its algorithms are designed and trained. Close attention is paid to which data sets are used and how data is annotated, utilizing scenarios as diverse as the world itself. AnyVision is also in strong support of regulation for the facial recognition industry and will continue to ensure that personal data stays private and is fully compliant with local laws and regulations.