Location data remains fundamental to app development, impacting the way businesses operate in today's digital landscape. One startup that leverages this crucial data is Placer.ai, which focuses on AI-driven market research. Recently, the company raised $75 million, elevating its valuation to nearly $1.5 billion.
Placer.ai offers extensive location-based analytics across various sectors, including retail, events, entertainment, consumer packaged goods (CPG), real estate, financial services, and healthcare. By merging AI with anonymized data gathered from third-party applications, Placer provides valuable insights for its clients.
The funding was initially indicated in a Form D filed in July, which hinted at the company’s goal to raise $75 million. Both the CEO and CFO have confirmed that the fundraising has been completed, bringing the updated valuation to $1.45 billion—an increase of nearly 50% since its last round, a $100 million Series C at a $1 billion valuation.
This investment highlights the rising importance of location data for businesses beyond app developers. As data protection becomes increasingly significant amidst numerous data breaches, it emphasizes the vast amount of data generated in our everyday lives.
Placer’s analytics encompass general metrics, such as foot traffic to specific locations, as well as intricate details about customer demographics, purchasing habits, and behavioral trends. While some may find these methods a bit unsettling, tracking location data has become more common, with other companies like Foursquare and Esri also providing similar analytics.
The startup acquires data through a software development kit (SDK) installed with numerous app publishers and other third-party sources. It emphasizes a "privacy by design" approach, ensuring all data used is fully anonymized before access.
Placer.ai has garnered significant backing from various investors, but the specifics of the latest funding participants remain undisclosed, aside from confirmation that existing investors were involved. PitchBook highlights GEM Realty Capital as a participant in this funding round. Placer has amassed over 50 investors, including notable names like Josh Buckley (former CEO of Product Hunt), Jeffrey Katzenberg's investment firm WndrCo, and multiple venture capital firms like Fifth Wall Ventures.
The company has demonstrated strong growth, with an annual revenue run rate exceeding $100 million as of February. CEO and co-founder Noam Ben-Zvi noted that Placer has grown 80% in the past year, projecting an additional 60% growth this year. Customer acquisition has soared from 1,000 clients in 2022 to over 4,300 today, with renowned clients including Sony, various city development organizations, Wegmans, and Century 21.
“The common thread among our clients is that they all have a stake in the physical world,” Ben-Zvi explained.
This funding opportunity arose from increased interest in the company, as CFO Dean Neese indicated. The capital will be allocated towards business development and enhancing features and datasets on the platform, which currently offers users access to hundreds of datasets.
Founded in 2018 by Ben-Zvi and fellow Israelis Zohar Bar-Yehuda (data scientist), Oded Fossfeld (CTO), and Ofir Lemel (CPO), Placer faced a significant hurdle just two years later: the COVID-19 pandemic, which initially seemed detrimental for a location analytics company. However, Ben-Zvi stated, “Our data provided critical insights into what was working and what wasn’t during those challenging times,” enabling the company to broaden its customer base as the world began to reopen.
By utilizing machine learning and inference, Placer has developed deeper profiles from the app data it collects, making it an attractive option for users eager to integrate more AI into their operations. “Customers demand a comprehensive all-in-one platform for market research,” Ben-Zvi articulated. “They want actionable data to inform decisions such as market expansion and competitive analysis, requiring all relevant information, aggregations, and analytics tools at their disposal.”
This robust blend of insights positions Placer.ai at the forefront of location intelligence in the market research landscape.
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