biped.ai copilot for visually impaired people wins CHF 150’000

Please login or
register
29.10.2021
biped Team

biped.ai (formerly known as SoundMap) aims to provide blind and visually impaired people with freedom and independence. The startup develops the world’s first autonomous walking device that combines 3D cameras with artificial intelligence algorithms, similar to how autonomous vehicles operate. This setup allows biped.ai to guide the visually impaired person through their surroundings. The startup will use the CHF 150,000 to bring the device to market in 2022.

Visually impaired people live with the constant fear of hitting obstacles. Independently discovering new places can be a struggle, leading to social exclusion and a continuous need for external help for everyday activities. Existing technological solutions often require extensive training but have a limited range of perception, give slow feedback, and are expensive. biped.ai develops an easy-to-use and affordable device that allows visually impaired people to safely and freely explore their surroundings.

biped.ai’s all-in-one walking device for visually impaired users is equipped with 3D cameras and uses artificial intelligence algorithms to provide real-time information on a person’s surroundings through directional sounds. The device is worn on the shoulders as a lightweight harness and provides wireless audio feedback via bone-conduction headphones. Just like autonomous vehicles, the device tracks objects and predicts trajectories to filter the most important information and allow the user to anticipate a few seconds ahead what will happen.

Worldwide, more than 300 million people are visually impaired, and 40 million are fully blind— diagnoses that will only increase as people get older. biped.ai’s solution has the potential to become a life-saving solution for many people: By combining advanced computer vision and signal processing, biped.ai can provide information up to 10 times faster than competitors at an affordable cost.

biped.ai was founded by Maël Fabien (CEO), Bruno Vollmer (CTO), and Rudolf Braun (Principal Audio Engineer). The team will use the funding to advance the industrialization of the device and expand the team to bring the device to the market in summer 2022. “The support of Venture Kick has been crucial in our development. It helped us build and fuel our vision when it mattered the most. We went faster than we could have imagined, and we are sincerely grateful for this experience,” said Maël Fabien, CEO of biped.ai.

(Press release)

0Comments

Company profiles on startup.ch

Fusion Lab Technologies Sàrl (biped.ai)

rss