Israeli Checkout-Free Shopping Tech Company Trigo Raises $60M

By NoCamels Team December 21, 2020 2 minutes

Trigo founders Michael Gabay and Daniel Gabay. Photo by Tom Bartov.

Israeli startup Trigo announced on Monday it raised $60 million in a Series B funding round for its checkout-free shopping technology.

The round was led by 83North, a global venture capital firm with interest and experience in retail tech including Hybris, Mirakl and Exotec. Existing investors Vertex Ventures Israel, Hetz Ventures, Red Dot Capital Partners, Tesco, and Morrag Investments joined the round, which brings Trigo’s total funding to $94 million.

The new funds will be used to “scale the company’s ability to meet growing demand, boost R&D, and expand its global presence,” Trigo said in the announcement.

Founded in 2017, Trigo taps into AI-powered computer vision technologies with off-the-shelf hardware to give shoppers a checkout-free experience that allows them to grab-and-go, while being automatically charged for the items they take with them.

The company applies proprietary algorithms to ceiling-mounted cameras, which automatically learn and upload data on the movements of shoppers allowing them to pick their desired items and go. Payments and receipts are settled digitally.

Trigo said it has seen rapid growth and increasing demand for its technology throughout 2020. It is currently working with leading retailers on the European mainland to open stores during 2021.

“Our technology enables grocers to integrate the efficiencies and insights of digital commerce into the physical world while providing a frictionless checkout experience for customers. Ultimately, our solution reduces physical contact and does away with waiting in line, enabling a safe, secure, and streamlined shopping experience that’s a win-win for retailers and consumers,” said Michael Gabay, Trigo’s co-founder and CEO.

Trigo’s technology has been tapped by Tesco, one of the world’s largest grocers with stores across the UK and Central Europe to work on a trial with Trigo at a Tesco Express convenience store at its headquarters about 20 miles (32 km) north of London. In October 2019, Tesco invested an undisclosed sum in Trigo.

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“Together, we have made great progress testing the frictionless checkout solution in our trial store in Welwyn Garden City and we are excited by this technology and the opportunities it brings,” Guus Dekkers, Tesco chief technology officer said.

Trigo’s solution is based on anonymized movement and product choice data within stores and offers grocery retailers a range of additional solutions powered by its 3D engine model called RetailOS, including predictive inventory management, pricing optimization, security and fraud prevention, planogram compliance, and event-driven marketing. This layer quickly enables actionable insight that boosts the chain’s efficiency.

“Trigo’s solution gives grocers a competitive edge with an option that is affordable and scalable, without having to make significant changes to their stores’ infrastructure,” said Yoram Snir, a partner at 83North. “While Amazon might be first out the gate to use its scale to capitalize on new consumer demands, it is no surprise to me that Europe’s biggest grocery retailers have tapped Trigo’s exceptional team to position them as leaders in frictionless checkout.”

Smart checkout technology will process nearly $400 billion of transactions within the next five years, according to Juniper Research. The same report also predicted that retailers will invest $23 billion into artificial intelligence by 2025, up from $5 billion in 2020.