Tastewise, an AI-powered food trends prediction and intelligence startup, has raised $5 million in a series A funding round led by PeakBridge, an investment firm specializing in food technology. In 2018, Pico Venture Partners provided Tastewise $1.5 million in seed funding, bringing the company’s total funding to $6.5 million to date.
The series A round will be used to further develop Tastewise’s AI technology, focused on understanding human interactions with food, such as the motivations behind why people select and prefer certain foods over others. By breaking down data to the specific functions that interest consumers, Tastewise not only knows what foods are trending, but why. With the platform expansion, Tastewise will further train its AI to comprehend the deep human motivation around food trends, with insights that will shape the future of the industry.
Tastewise gains actionable insights into real-life interactions with food by analyzing over 1 billion food photos shared every month together with the largest restaurant menu database available today. The company works with Fortune 500 food and beverage brands to pinpoint market opportunities and is primed to identify potential market gaps to fill for rising trends like virtual restaurants. Plans to expand the AI technology platform’s visual analysis of images will empower the platform to provide more proactive insights on emerging trends in the culinary industry.
“As FoodTech investors, we’ve evaluated hundreds of companies’ impact on the market,” said Erich Sieber, PeakBridge’s founder and managing partner. “Tastewise is absolutely a company that is on the path towards revolutionizing the food industry with deep data-based consumer understanding.”
The latest research from Mintel shows that after several years of growth, the foodservice industry is expected to decline by up to 30% from 2019 to 2020, following nationwide dine-in bans/restrictions, restaurant closures, job losses, and lowered consumer confidence.
The latest research from Mintel shows that after several years of growth, the foodservice industry is expected to decline by up to 30% from 2019 to 2020, following nationwide dine-in bans/restrictions, restaurant closures, job losses, and lowered consumer confidence.
According to Innova Market Insights’ COVID-19 Consumer Survey (conducted in March 2020), in China, India, and Indonesia, personal concerns center on health, personal income, and the availability of healthcare and products to buy.
According to Innova Market Insights’ COVID-19 Consumer Survey (conducted in March 2020), in China, India, and Indonesia, personal concerns center on health, personal income, and the availability of healthcare and products to buy.
Geltor has announced the closing of a $91.3 million Series B financing that will fuel the global expansion of its ingredients-as-a-service platform.