Computer Vision Startups Are The Next Big Entrepreneurial Wave

AI has eyes and that's computer vision. Here's how computer vision startups are impacting industries.

Artificial intelligence is now revolutionizing the world with Computer Vision startups. Computer vision in AI is automating human sight. From retail, agriculture, insurance to construction, computer vision can be used across many fields in society. It is finding applications in a wide range of industry-specific cases that will greatly benefit the economy. A good number of computer vision startups are gearing up to break out to a commercial scale and attain mainstream prominence.

Applications Of Computer Vision

Agriculture

Agriculture is the oldest and one of the largest industries in the world. But since it's the oldest, it still follows the traditional route of decision making. Deciding what to harvest and when to harvest is severely underoptimized. This can be changed using visual data and machine learning. The food production process can drastically improve by using aerial imagery collected via satellites, drones, or planes. Computer vision systems can provide farmers with real-time insights to optimize their fertilizer and chemical distribution, and improve other farming operations that will improve their crop production.

For example, image-based analytics can identify which crop needs more or less irrigation, where the pipe leaks or obstructions are affecting crop growth, which area needs more or less fertilization, etc. Unlike traditional methods, AI systems can accurately determine the efficiency, reliability, and scalability of agriculture processes.

Agriculture tech startups like Ceres Imaging, Prospera, Sentera, and Hummingbird Technologies are already pursuing these opportunities.

Retail

Computer vision has many uses in the retail sector. One of the most exciting uses is check-out free shopping. This use case is futuristic, problem-solving, and simple. Once a shop has been equipped with necessary computer vision AI sensors, shoppers can enter the shop, pick up the items, walkout by passing in front of the sensors, and receive an automated receipt for their purchases without queuing in front of the cashier.

A real-life demonstration of the success of this concept is the Amazon Go program that was launched in 2016. Other startups who are cashing this concept include Standard Cognition, Grabango, Trigo Vision, Zippin, and Aifi. "The in-person shopping experience will change forever now that computers can see. Computer vision systems like Grabango's detect every product that goes into your cart, so there is no need to re-itemize them at the end of a shopping trip. You just grab, go, and get on with your day. " says Will Glaser, Grabango CEO.

Checkout-free shopping facilitated by computer vision will also reduce labour costs and improve overall shopping experience. Apart from this, inventory management is another application of computer vision. Optimizing the product mix and making sure the shelves are stocked at all times is an everyday challenge for retailers. If the shelves are empty and the products are out of stock, they can't risk losing billions of dollars of revenue annually. Focal systems is a startup that is using computer vision to automate inventory management.

Insurance

Insurance industry relies on visual asset assessment. It requires accurate price and underwrite policies, at the same time determining the risk of damage after an accident for the purpose of claims. To enable a smoother process, computer vision facilitates faster, cheaper, and more accurate assessment. Cape Analytics and Betterview are two computer vision AI startups that are providing this service to insurance companies. They use geospatial data to automatically identify the building material, condition of the roof, square footage of the roof, how much debris the property has, and many other factors that determine the property's risk profile and give an optimal insurance pricing. Another computer vision AI startup is Tractable, based out of London, that uses this technology to generate instant damage estimates for car accidents and natural disasters.

Construction

In the construction industry, there are many opportunities for process optimization. Application of computer vision can significantly boost productivity and save costs. TraceAir is a startup that uses drones to collect aerial images of construction sites and enables supervisors to monitor the projects remotely.

Like every other technology, computer vision can also be used in negative ways. Therefore, it is crucial to set regulation so that businesses and individuals can ensure the society cashes this technology responsible, for everyone's good.