Cutting airport flight delays with AI + First customers for OurCrowd’s investment copilot
A weekly selection of news and investment opportunities from OurCrowd, the global venture investing platform
Startup of the Week
CropX: Global AgTech leader expands global reach, projects break-even in 2025
One of the world’s most urgent problems is how to feed a rapidly growing global population in a changing climate while reducing harm to the environment. OurCrowd portfolio company CropX Technologies is an agriculture analytics company whose SaaS platform uses AI to analyze data from proprietary in-ground sensors combined with precise weather data, satellite imaging, topography, and other data sources. The intelligence provided by CropX increases farmers’ yields up to 20%, with up to 50% water savings, 20% fertilizer and chemicals savings, and 13% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. The company services 3,000+ paying customers in 70+ countries with over 15,000 installations. CropX recently launched a major initiative in the Australasia region and announced a partnership with CLAAS, a global manufacturer of agricultural machinery. The company’s revenue grew ~50% in 2023 and it projects a 44% increase in 2024, on track to break-even in 2025. CropX’s current funding round is now open to OurCrowd investors.
Indra onboards IntellAct AI to reduce flight delays
Flight delays cost the aviation industry millions each year and continue to cause endless passenger frustrations. OurCrowd’s AI-tech portfolio company IntellAct has joined forces with transport and aviation giant Indra to reduce departure delays, cut carbon emissions, and enhance passenger experience. IntellAct’s AI-powered middleware uses existing CCTV infrastructure to monitor the turnaround process and deploys the results to Indra’s airport operations platform, identifying service delays or safety violations. This collaboration promises to revolutionize how airlines manage disruptions, paving the way for a more efficient and sustainable future in air travel. “This ground-breaking approach is revolutionizing airport management, setting a new standard for efficiency and transforming the future of air travel,” says Lidia Muñoz Perez, Indra’s Director of Technology, Digital Transformation and Mobility. IntellAct's current funding round is open to OurCrowd investors under NDA.
OurCrowd’s AI investment copilot wins first customers
Integrated Data Intelligence (IDI), an OurCrowd subsidiary based in Abu Dhabi, has onboarded the first cohort of customers for DANNA, its proprietary investment AI copilot, as I told a panel at last week’s Abu Dhabi Finance Week. DANNA provides a new set of efficient AI-enabled capabilities to support the investment process including sourcing, validation and due diligence, detailed analysis and ad-hoc research, report generation, and decision support on global investment opportunities. “DANNA is set to disrupt the multibillion-dollar private market investment management industry,” IDI CEO Dr. Hasanat Dewan told global investors gathered in Abu Dhabi. “Our new investment prediction platform brings unprecedented AI capabilities to lift the veil on private market investing, offering objective insights and clarity for our customers.”
FDA designation for MeMed Severity sepsis test
The FDA granted Breakthrough Device Designation to the MeMed Severity test for suspected sepsis patients. The receipt of FDA designation by MeMed, OurCrowd’s leader in the emerging field of advanced host-response technologies, underscores the transformative potential of MeMed Severity to advance the management of patients with suspected acute infections and suspected sepsis by empowering clinicians with timely data-driven clinical insights. The designation follows FDA clearance for the MeMed BV test which redefined how medical professionals differentiate between bacterial and viral infections. “With rapid results and seamless workflow integration, such advancements have the potential to transform sepsis management and significantly improve patient outcomes,” says Beat Müller, MD, Professor of Medicine, University of Basel.
Israel is set to surf the global AI investment wave
Investors are asking when or even whether the huge investments in AI by NVIDIA, Google, and others will eventually pay dividends. Corporate leaders appear to be driven more by FOMO than by P&L, concerned about missing out on the next big thing even when there is no clear path to profitability. I am confident the bet on AI will pay off and that Israel will be among those leading the way to success. A new report from Startup Nation Central confirms Israel’s status as ‘a global AI powerhouse’ where startups have begun to solve significant optimization problems with major cost efficiencies that will enable AI to scale and reach its promise. Read more in my new ‘Investors on the Frontlines’ column.
NVIDIA, Quantum Machines score quantum computing breakthrough
NVIDIA, Rigetti Computing, and OurCrowd portfolio company Quantum Machines have solved increasingly complex calibration requirements of quantum computing systems, a major bottleneck in the widescale deployment of quantum computers. The three companies announced that they were able to remotely automate the calibration of Rigetti’s 9-cubit quantum processing unit with Quantum Machines’ advanced control system and NVIDIA DGX Quantum, Gil Press reports in Forbes. “As we move toward systems with thousands of qubits,” says Yonatan Cohen, Co-founder and CTO of Quantum Machines, “the challenge becomes exponentially more difficult. The traditional approach of manual calibration by quantum physicists simply won't scale with our ambitions for larger quantum computers.”
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UMass Memorial Health adopts AEYE Health AI screening
UMass Memorial Health, the largest not-for-profit health care system in central Massachusetts, chalked up significant improvements for patients by adopting AEYE-DS, the AI-based autonomous diagnostic screening system developed by AEYE Health, OurCrowd’s leader in AI-based diagnostics for retinal imaging. This integration aims to enhance diabetic eye care by providing immediate diagnosis, improving screening processes and adherence, reducing ophthalmology wait times, and boosting quality and performance markers. Within four months of AEYE-DS being introduced, diabetic retinopathy screening adherence increased from 29% to 49%, and the average screening time in the hospital’s primary care workflow fell by 75%.
Microsoft Azure hosts ThetaRay Gen AI fraud detection platform
ThetaRay is set to further transform the landscape of financial crime detection, enhancing risk assessment, operational efficiency, and reporting in anti-money laundering (AML) practices. Through a major collaboration with Microsoft, the OurCrowd portfolio company’s new GenAI Financial Crime Detection Suite is integrated with the Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service. ThetaRay’s AI-powered anti-fraud platform empowers financial institutions of all sizes to combat increasing challenges posed by sophisticated financial crimes, including money laundering and terror financing. “By integrating generative AI in their financial crime detection solutions, organizations can mitigate risk, drive exceptional efficiencies, and elevate regulatory standards,” says Yina Arenas, Vice President, Azure AI at Microsoft.
Zippin’s checkout-free retail lands in Arizona vacation paradise
The 37-acre Revel Surf Park at Cannon Beach, AZ, is the first vacation destination to host a checkout-free store operated by Zippin, OurCrowd’s global leader in frictionless retail. “Cannon Beach is creating something truly extraordinary – an immersive blend of innovation and unforgettable experiences," says Krishna Motukuri, CEO and Co-founder of Zippin. “Incorporating our checkout-free technology enhances the way guests experience this remarkable destination.”
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More than 800 high-tech jobs worldwide
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Startup Beat is a weekly selection of news and investment opportunities from OurCrowd, the global venture investing platform.
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OurCrowd is a global venture and private market alternatives investing platform. To date we have more than $2.3 billion in commitments, 240,000 registered investors, 480 portfolio companies, 58 venture funds and 68 exits.
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