Technology firm secures £3.5m investment

Birmingham technology business Geospatial Insight has raised £3.5m to increase research into machine learning and develop further visual intelligence technology.

The investment has been provided by the Midlands Engine Investment Fund (MEIF), operated by private equity house Midven, alongside Foresight Williams and VenturesOne.

It is the second round of fundraising for the business, which specialises in satellite, aerial and drone imagery.

David Fox, chief executive of Geospatial Insight, said: “Over the next 12 months we will be strengthening our machine learning expertise and developing new customer propositions that better inform enterprise decision making.

“By doing so, we will also further extend our leading position in delivering business intelligence and analysis derived from satellite, aerial and drone imagery.”

Geospatial uses a combination of machine learning, big data analytics and remote sensing techniques to provide evidence based insights for improved decision making in a range of sectors including trading markets, financial markets and insurance.

Following Hurricane Harvey, when 27 trillion gallons of rainwater fell on Houston and south-east Texas, causing $75bn in damages, Geospatial’s drone network provided images of such clarity that insurers were able to identify objects as small as 1cm, which helped to speed up claims and reimburse thousand of people displaced from their homes.

Midven director Surjit Kooner added: “This £3.5m capital injection, supported by the MEIF, will prove vital as Geospatial Insight begins its recruitment drive – capitalising on what is an extremely high growth sector.

“Geospatial’s use of machine learning techniques has significantly increased the volume of data that can be packaged and analysed into truly scaleable actionable intelligence products.”

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