Caper AI

Caper AI (alternatively known as Caper) is a software technology company that develops and implements self-service checkout shopping carts as well as AI-based software applications for retailers, wholesalers, and distributors of fast-moving consumer goods, mainly in the grocery, convenience store, and foodservice industries.

The company was founded in 2016 by Lindon Gao and York Yang with its main office based out of New York. Since its inception, the company has focused on the development of automated checkout software for grocery retailers. According to Wall Street Journal, Caper's technology started to roll out in US and Canada grocery stores in 2019. In 2019, Sobeys, the second-largest food retailer in Canada, publicly announced the commercial deployment of the Caper's Smart Cart technology with its first location being at Glen Abbey Sobeys supermarket in Oakville, Ontario.

Other deployments include Foodcellar & Co., C-town, Met Fresh Market, Pioneer Supermarkets, Gala Fresh Farms, and Brooklyn Fare. In autumn 2020, the company introduced Caper Counter, a cashierless countertop for small grocery stores under 10,000 sq feet and fewer than 10,000 SKUs with software applying machine learning algorithms, computer vision, and Sensor Fusion technology.In 2020, one of the largest American chain retailers Kroger launched "KroGo" AI-powered shopping carts, developed by Caper AI. The pilot program was introduced at one of its stores in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Caper AI closed its series A round of funding for $10 million in 2019.

• Caper AI uses several technologies to automate retail payment processing, including:
• computer vision
• deep learning algorithms
• sensor fusion for the purchase, checkout, and payment steps
• weight sensors
• computer vision equipped on each shopping cart for automatic self-service checkout.

The company claims that its technology can recognize products that are similar or identical but can also differentiate between them based on variety and size. The software is installed on Caper Smart Carts that automatically detect the items put in it and calculate the total cost using cameras, scale, weight sensors, and computer vision equipped on each shopping cart for automatic self-service checkout.

Caper builds autonomous retailer devices and solutions powered by deep learning and computer vision. Caper was a pivot from QueueHop during its participation in the YC W16 cohort of Y Combinator.