Amazon reportedly paid as much as $100m to buy Body Labs, whose scanning technology could help accurately predict the best fit for clothing customers on its portal.
E-commerce and internet company Amazon has acquired Body Labs, a US-based body scanner developer based on research at Brown University, in a deal that is worth between $70m and $100m, TechCrunch reported yesterday.
The report cited two sources, with a first putting the value around $100m and a second person suggesting it was closer to $70m. TechCrunch itself estimated the figure to be as low as $50m.
Body Labs confirmed the acquisition in a short statement on its website, but did not offer additional details.
Founded in 2013, Body Labs has developed a body scanner, called Soma, that can generate an accurate 3D representation of people based on a photograph or video.
The technology uses a combination of artificial intelligence, computer vision and body modelling, and could help customers determine accurate measurements when they buy clothes online.
The spinout is based on research initially undertaken at Brown University, with further development at research organisation Max Planck Society’s Institute for Intelligent Systems.
Max Planck Innovation, the tech transfer arm of Max Planck Society, previously participated in an $8m series A round in 2015 alongside spinout-focused investment firm Osage University Partners and Intel Capital, the corporate venturing arm of chip maker Intel, which led the round.
FirstMark Capital and Catalus Capital also contributed to the series A round. FirstMark had earlier led a $2.2m seed round in 2014, with participation from New York Angels and unnamed, existing shareholders.
