Midwich Ignite, the corporate venture capital arm of Midwich Group, has invested in Vizgard, a dual-use AI SME which uses edge-based software to provide time critical, AI-enabled insight and camera automation in defence and public safety spaces.
The funding, raised as part of an oversubscribed seed funding round led by Sure Valley Ventures, will see Vizgard’s aspirations to bridge gaps in camera-based defence and public safety systems through a distributed visual AI platform, FortifAI.
FortifAI uses low-power, commercially available processors to improve systems, including security cameras, counter-drone technologies, and unmanned vehicles. The system uses real-time threat identification and automatic camera control, reducing operator workload by combining field-proven traditional computer vision with deep learning models.
Will Fenby, investment manager, Midwich Ignite, commented: “We are delighted to be co-investing into Vizgard alongside our colleagues at Sure Valley and Focal SPV. We believe Vizgard’s visual AI platform, FortifAI, offers a revolution in public safety and are buoyed by the government’s new AI Opportunities Action Plan announced this week. With our expertise in the UK security market, we are delighted to be supporting a business at the forefront of AI innovation in this space. We look forward to partnering with Alex and his team on the next phase of their growth plan.”
Pictured: Vizgard Founder and CEO Alex Kehoe at Resilience Conference