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Standard AI (formerly Standard Cognition)

Automated Stores
Segments:
Automated Checkout
?
Product stage:
Early
?

Standard AI specializes in autonomous checkout solutions for brick-and-mortar stores. Customers log in with their phones as they enter the store and leave after they finish shopping, with purchases tracked through ceiling-mounted cameras and machine learning and an email-generated receipt. Standard AI’s solution does not use facial recognition or biometrics, which protects shopper privacy, and the solution does not require shelf scanning or any other sensory equipment. Collectively, the company’s camera-first solution, which can be installed within existing store layouts with minimal disruption while protecting shopper privacy, is considered its competitive advantage. 

In 2019, the company opened its first cashierless store—roughly 1,900 square feet (0.8x the average convenience store size)—in San Francisco. The store is used mainly to showcase its technology offering. Retailers can deploy the system by buying cameras and computers from Standard AI and paying a monthly service fee based on store size, the number of items in the store, and product changes. It also offers two other products—Standard Analytics, which allows retailers to analyze customer choices to better understand e-commerce data, and Standard Security, a loss-prevention system to address violence, theft, etc. 

Key customers and partnerships

From the outset, Standard AI has employed an acquisitive strategy towards strengthening its technology, expanding the pool of available technical knowledge, and growing reach. In January 2019, the company purchased Explorer.ai, a company with mapping and computer vision technology aimed at supporting automated checkout in larger store formats. The acquisition also augmented Standard’s pool of AI engineers. In October 2019, Standard AI acquired Deep Magic, a New York-based retail automation startup focused on computer vision, to bolster the company’s automation capabilities by leveraging DeepMagic’s autonomous checkout technology patents. In May 2020, the company acquired Italian cashierless startup Checkout Technologies, a developer of AI technologies for frictionless retail checkout. In November 2021,  Standard AI acquired ThirdEye Labs, a UK-based computer vision startup focused on retail tech—in particular, the acquisition strengthened the platform’s ability to leverage AI and computer vision to help retailers detect instances of in-store theft and checkout fraud. In February 2023,  Standard Cognition announced the acquisition of Skip, a developer of self-checkout kiosks and mobile applications. Standard AI plans to connect Skip’s self-checkout solutions with its own AI-powered, autonomous checkout technology in order to provide an industry-first integrated solution. The company also plans to integrate Skip’s cloud-based point of sales with its complex back office ecosystem to provide a more streamlined solution.

In July 2018, Standard AI partnered with Paltac Corporation, a supplier to most of Japan’s small retail industry. In September 2019, it deployed its technology at a grab-and-go store in minor league baseball stadium Polar Park in Massachusetts. In November 2019, Standard AI partnered with Mars Wrigley to launch a cashierless store in San Francisco. In August 2020, it first announced a partnership with Alimentation Couche-Tard, a Fortune Global 500 company that operates around 14,500 convenience stores worldwide, including under the brand Circle K. The duo’s first convenience store retrofitted with Standard AI’s AI technology was to be located in Phoenix, Arizona, with others to follow. In October 2020, the company partnered with campus dining services provider Chartwells Higher Education (a division of Compass Group North America) to integrate its checkout-free technology into stores across universities in North America. In February 2022 , the two companies launched a fully automated market at San Jose State University (SJSU) in California and within months of the launch, reported a 21% increase in store traffic and 23% increase in average transaction size. The two companies launched five more new automated stores in 2022 and in August 2022, expanded its partnership to launch 100 autonomous retail stores at higher learning institutions across the US. In April 2022, the company partnered with American Airlines Center to launch two new frictionless food and beverage experiences. In June 2022, Standard AI partnered with the pharmaceutical company Compass Group and FLIK Hospitality Group to launch an autonomous store within Compass Group’s headquarters. 

In August 2023 Standard AI announced plans to integrate Google Cloud’s “Vertex AI” suite of tools, with the company’s portfolio of solutions that includes point of sale (PoS) solutions, self-checkout solutions, and  AI-assisted checkout solutions.

Funding and financials

In February 2021, Standard AI raised USD 150 million in a Series C funding round led by Softbank’s Vision Fund 2 with participation from EQT, CRV, SK Networks, and others. The investment was reportedly the single-largest for a pure-play computer vision and autonomous checkout company and propelled Standard AI to unicorn status. The company planned to use the funding to expand its offering to over 50,000 stores over the next five years. The latest funding round brought the company’s total funding to over USD 236 million.

Automated Stores

Automated Stores

Key stats
Featured companies
52
Total funding (USD)
3.3 Bn
Total addressable market (USD)
4.9 Bn
Key competitors
 
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Company Brief


HQ location:
548 Market St Suite 96346 San Francisco CA USA
Founded year:
2017
Funding data are powered by Crunchbase
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