A Kanata North company that uses high-tech video technology to help retailers and restaurants catch thieves has received a fresh infusion of venture capital.
Solink – which counts Tim Hortons, New York Fries and Wendy’s among its customers – develops cloud-based security solutions that are integrated with its customers’ existing cameras, point-of-sale terminals and other data systems.
Its technology effectively turns any camera into a smart camera by using artificial intelligence to learn behaviour associated with internal and external theft.
Here’s one example of how it works: If a coffee shop employee rings up a police discount, Solink’s technology can quickly determine whether the customer was actually a law enforcement officer in uniform or if the staff member fraudulently applied the reduced rate and pocketed the difference in price.
In a nutshell, it’s a data-driven – rather than incident-driven – approach that avoids the headache of manually retrieving evidence by time and location.
Earlier this month, Solink – which is headquartered on March Road – said it closed a $5-million funding round led by Generation Ventures. ScaleUp Ventures, BDC IT Venture Fund and Valor Equity Partners also participated.
“Together, we will be able to meet the growing demand for our solution while making surveillance video a source of insight, instead of just an insurance policy,” said Solink CEO Mike Matta in a statement. “With so many hours of surveillance video recorded, businesses need Solink to proactively identify fraud and deliver business insights.”
Solink – which was named one of the city’s Fastest Growing Companies by the Ottawa Business Journal earlier this year – will be fêted again next week when it receives Kanata North Team of the Year honours at the Best Ottawa Business Awards.
