Brest, Grenoble, Toulouse (France), April 20, 2023 — OSO-AI, a deeptech company that pioneered Ambient Intelligence (Aml) at the service of vulnerable people and healthcare workers, announced today the completion of a Series A financing round worth 10 million euros. This raising was led by its historical shareholders Innovacom, Novinvest Partners and Breizh-up (co-investment fund in the Brittany region, financed by the ERDF managed by UI Investissement), joined by Cemag Invest Partners. This transaction follows an initial funding round of 4 million euros that closed in September 2020.
The funds raised will allow OSO-AI to meet the strong demand for its augmented ear device from caregivers, from medico-social centers in France, and to start the first sales in neighboring countries. OSO-AI has in fact developed a technology that is unique in the world for analyzing sounds and noises. Non-invasive, the OSO-AI augmented ear solution consists of a box equipped with microphones and sensors coupled with algorithms that analyze in real time all suspicious sounds and noises in the environment of vulnerable populations (elderly people, people with disabilities). This box is connected to an application on a smartphone or tablet, made available to healthcare personnel, who can thus quickly identify suspicious or abnormal situations requiring intervention.
Trained on several million sound samples, qualified by the OSO-AI teams, the algorithms of this augmented ear are capable of accurately analyzing more than 150 classes of sounds and noises such as falls, shocks, breathing, snoring, snoring, snoring, vomiting, vomiting, footsteps, and of course the words of vulnerable people as well as any intrusion by a third party. This technology aims to facilitate and alleviate the work of caregivers who are responsible for vulnerable people, in specialized institutions, in strict compliance with the confidentiality of the patient-caregiver relationship.
Co-developed since 2018 in real conditions with establishments from the Red Cross, Brest University Hospital and Vyv3 Handicap, OSO-AI systems are currently deployed in around twenty institutions in France (retirement homes, CHU, IEM, establishments for multi-disabled people) and in private individuals as part of experiments with key players in remote assistance.
Olivier Menut, co-founder and president of OSO-AI, said: “I thank all of our shareholders for their trust and their unwavering support. Since the commercial launch of our augmented ear solution in 2021, first in nursing homes and then gradually in other medico-social centers, OSO-AI has been facing very strong demand. To date, we have nearly 1,000 devices installed in France and expect to have nearly 3,000 by the end of this year. Although young, OSO-AI is, in fact, facing scale-up challenges - increasing our production, technological development around new functionalities and categories of sick people. Challenges to which we must respond with a significant investment effort. In addition, the perspectives opened up by our technology are extremely vast to improve the monitoring of fragile people, in institutions, as well as “outside the walls.”
Catherine Dunand, manager of Novinvest Partners and president of Cemag Invest, added: “We have been impressed by the work carried out by the OSO-AI teams since we became a shareholder in 2020. In addition to the technological excellence of its teams in exploiting AI for the analysis of the noise environment, the execution of their development plan is remarkable. Their solution, validated and marketed, has undeniable advantages: non-stigmatizing, non-intrusive and well accepted by patients, it is operational 24 hours a day. It thus greatly relieves the mental burden of healthcare workers whose constraints we all know. More serene thanks to this intelligent ear, they are better able to intervene wisely and safely.”
Vincent Deltrieu, Innovacom partner, commented: “We are excited to increase our support for OSO-AI, which was initiated in 2020 during its first round of funding. The company was able to validate its augmented ear solution with various types of players and start marketing it in a promising way. This project is distinguished by the quality of the teams, its technical and market depth. It is also a perfect example of Innovacom's investment philosophy, focused on projects that are transformative for their sectors and at the heart of tomorrow's social and environmental challenges.”
Stéphane Lefevre-Sauli, investment director at UI Investissement and in charge of managing Breizh Up, concluded: “Encouraging strong and ambitious players to emerge on the territory who will have an economic and social impact on tomorrow's Brittany is one of the objectives of Breizh Up. Through the strength of its breakthrough solution in the field of AI for sound analysis, the quality of its teams, the depth of its market, the responsible scope of its solution which allows an improvement in the quality of care, and the quality of work of healthcare personnel, by reducing their stress and allowing them to focus on their job, we are very proud to support the development of this emblematic Finistère startup supported since its creation by the dynamism of an entire local ecosystem.”
Deeptech start-up pioneer inAmbient Intelligence, OSO-AI has developed a technology that is unique in the world: The Augmented Ear of Caregivers. This innovative solution, making the most of artificial intelligence and the recognition of noises and sounds, allows the secure and remote monitoring of fragile people and users of medico-social institutions while improving the quality of life at work of health workers.
OSO-AI was created in 2018 in Brest by four engineering friends, with a long experience in international groups in France and the United States. It employs 30 highly qualified people (engineers and AI developers, data scientists, data labellers).
For more information: www.oso-ai.com/service
OSO-AI
Philippe Roguedas — Co-founder and Director of Operations
philippe.roguedas@oso-ai.com /06 49 81 02 88
Ulysse Communication
Pierre-Louis Germain/ plgermain@ulysse-communication.com /06 64 79 97 51
Margaux Puech/ mpuech@ulysse-communication.com /07 86 16 01 09
Bruno Arabian/ barabian@ulysse-communication.com /06 87 88 47 26
About Cemag Invest Cemag Invest is a family office dedicated to health and technology, paying particular attention to adding value to patients and focusing on simple but disruptive technological solutions. In particular, Cemag Invest has invested in Wandercraft, Diabeloop, Avicenna.ai and Aryballe Technologies. contact@cemag-invest.com
About Innovacom Innovacom is a pioneer in innovation capital in France. Since 1988, he has invested nearly one billion euros, supported more than 300 digital and high-tech startups, participated in more than 20 IPOs and completed more than 150 industrial disposals. Today, Innovacom supports innovative industrial projects and disruptive technologies with high potential by providing them with funding, advice and support. Its association with the Turenne Group has given birth to one of the independent leaders in private equity in France with a 1.4 billion euros platform under management. Present in Paris and Marseille, Innovacom Gestion is approved by the Financial Markets Authority. www.innovacom.com / @innovacomvc
Media contacts:
Taddeo: Wandrille Clermontel/ wandrille.clermontel@taddeo.fr /06 58 53 45 91
Innovacom (Turenne Group): Céline Goncalves/ celine.goncalves@innovacom.com /01 44 94 15 01
About Breizh Up Created in 2015 by the Brittany Region with the support of the European Union (FEDER), Breizh Up is a tool at the service of the renewal of the Breton economy. Endowed with €20 million, it makes it possible to support young innovative Breton companies in their fundraising of between €200,000 and €750,000. From the very first fundraising, it aims to strengthen the supply of capital for the projects of creation and growth of companies that it supports over the long term, often over several rounds of financing. Breizh Up also aims to encourage the intervention of private players present in the seed and venture capital segment, with whom it co-invests, to finance more innovative companies that guarantee the jobs of tomorrow. Breizh Up is managed by UI Investissement. For more information: breizhup.bretagne.bzh
