ADT Invests in Percepta Labs, “Ethical AI” Security Technology Startup
ADT Inc. (NYSE: ADT) has announced a significant investment exceeding $1 million in Percepta Labs, a Philadelphia-based AI startup. This funding aims to commercialize advanced technology designed to anonymize demographic features such as race, gender, and age in facial recognition data, enhancing ethical AI in retail environments. ADT Commercial plans to collaborate closely with Percepta to develop AI solutions aimed at improving loss prevention accuracy, potentially doubling human capabilities. The initiative reflects ADT's commitment to leading transformative change in the security industry.
- Investment over $1 million in Percepta Labs to enhance AI technology.
- Potential to develop ethical AI that improves loss prevention accuracy.
- Collaboration expected to accelerate Percepta's growth and market readiness.
- None.
One of the leading providers of commercial security commits to invest more than
BOCA RATON, Fla., Sept. 21, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ADT Inc. (NYSE: ADT) announced today that, via its commercial channel (“ADT Commercial”), it is investing in Percepta Labs, an artificial-intelligence technology startup out of Philadelphia. ADT Commercial is a premier provider of commercial security, fire, life safety, and risk consulting services in the U.S., and through its investment will fund the commercialization and application of the startup’s cutting-edge AI technology to help detect and deter shoplifting. ADT Commercial will work directly with Percepta to further test and develop the application of Percepta’s proprietary, socially responsible AI technology in commercial environments and facilitate the launch when the solution is market-ready.
Founded by Philippe Sawaya, Neil Gramopadhye, and Jonathan Mak while pursuing their undergraduate degrees at the University of Pennsylvania, Percepta’s proprietary "ethical AI" technology responds to emerging concerns surrounding the use of facial recognition technologies and is designed to anonymize individuals’ demographic features—including race, gender, and age—by analyzing existing security camera feeds to detect shoplifting incidents in real-time. Using advanced action recognition techniques, Percepta’s AI technology tracks individuals’ movements, scanning for probable shoplifting or precursory shoplifting behavior and assesses theft probability.
“We’re so proud to place our support in forward-thinking organizations like Percepta, who are aiming to truly revolutionize the industry,” said Dan Bresingham, Executive Vice President for ADT. “We pride ourselves on being at the forefront of change in our industry. We believe Percepta could signal a tidal shift in how we approach AI, facial recognition, and data collection, and we look forward to seeing how their technology continues to develop.”
In addition to taking a socially responsible approach to AI, Percepta’s technology shows tremendous promise when it comes to loss prevention accuracy. Early tests by Percepta indicate the technology could be more than two times more accurate than human loss prevention personnel in detecting shoplifting behaviors, translating into improved margins, decreased shrink, and a better experience for customers, while eliminating biases based on race, gender, and age.
“AI’s presence in our lives has skyrocketed, yet it poses ethical concerns that have not been sufficiently addressed. We’ve made these concerns a key priority and are proud to have developed an ethical AI technology that counteracts these biases in the world of retail and beyond,” said Sawaya, CEO of Percepta. “We look forward to seeing how ADT Commercial’s vast experience and commercial network will accelerate Percepta’s growth. We’re excited to partner with them in our shared mission to support socially responsible AI security solutions.”
For more information on ADT Commercial security services and Percepta, please visit www.adtcommercial.com and www.percepta.ai.
About ADT Commercial
ADT Commercial is the commercial channel of ADT and a premier provider of commercial security, fire, life safety and risk consulting services in the United States. Headquartered in Boca Raton, Fla., ADT Commercial supports more than 300,000 customer locations with its strong network of over 5,000 employees across 150 offices. ADT Commercial is built on a foundation of customer service excellence and strengthened by decades of industry expertise. For more information, please visit www.adtcommercial.com and follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube.
About Percepta Labs
Percepta develops cloud-based, computer vision video analysis software with an emphasis on social responsibility. Its first offering analyzes retailers’ existing security feeds using ethical AI and delivers real-time alerts to combat shoplifting. Founded at the University of Pennsylvania, Percepta operates out of Philadelphia, PA. For more information, please visit www.percepta.ai or follow on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.
About ADT
ADT is a leading provider of security, automation, and smart home solutions serving consumer and business customers through more than 300 locations, 9 owned and operated monitoring centers, and the largest network of security professionals in the United States. The company offers many ways to help protect customers by delivering lifestyle-driven solutions via professionally installed, do-it-yourself, mobile, and digital-based offerings for residential, small business, and larger commercial customers. For more information, please visit www.adt.com or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.
Media Contact
Mallory Pernai, Marketing Manager
ADT Commercial
mallorypernai@adt.com
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