Participated · Series A · Oct 2024

Sensei builds contactless, autonomous store systems that use computer vision, AI-powered sensors, and real-time algorithms to automatically update customers' carts and present ready-to-pay item lists while protecting identity and privacy. The platform gives retailers real-time visibility into operations, reduces checkout costs, and helps prevent stock-outs. The company says it nearly doubled its number of stores over the past year and now operates with clients in Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, and Brazil. Sensei aims to reach 1,000 fully autonomous points of sale by 2026 and plans expansion into central and northern Europe. Financially, Sensei recently raised a €15 million Series A and previously closed a $6.5 million (€5.4 million) Seed in 2021. Sensei develops a proprietary platform that combines cameras, sensors and AI to enable checkout-free grab-and-go stores and forecourt formats. The platform allows retailers to automate existing and new stores, manage inventory in real time, and access insights into store usage. The startup plans to scale its R&D and launch new stores following the funding. Sensei positions itself against competitors such as Trigo and in a market where Amazon is selling cashierless store technology to other retailers. The company was founded by Vasco Portugal (CEO, ex-MIT), Joana Rafael (COO), Nuno Moutinho (CTO) and Paulo Carreira (CSO). It is based in Lisbon. Sensei, founded last year in Portugal, develops AI-powered algorithms for cameras that gather and analyse data on people and product performance in physical stores. The company says the data is anonymous and GDPR-compliant. Its product aims to help brick-and-mortar retailers close the data and insights gap with e-commerce by providing analytics on what drives shopping and product performance. Sensei's stated mission is to digitize physical stores and create smart stores that intuitively understand the needs of customers and employees to deliver more convenient, personalized shopping experiences. The startup participated in Metro and Techstars' retail accelerator last year. It has positioned its analytics as tools for retailers to implement changes that grow in-store sales.

Led · Series B · Jun 2017

Yoyo Wallet is a mobile payments and customer loyalty platform that enables fast mobile ordering, payments and personalised loyalty programs for consumers while providing retailers with analytics and campaign tools. Customers can use the Yoyo app or retailer-specific branded apps built and powered by Yoyo. The company has deployed a Yoyo-powered app for Caffè Nero across 640 stores in the UK and Ireland and counts an acceptance network of more than 1,700 outlets including Caffè Nero and Planet Organic. Launched in 2013, Yoyo has more than 400,000 registered users. It plans to expand partnerships with UK high-street retailers, broaden its platform capabilities and pursue European expansion using the new funding. Retailers benefit from the analytics and campaign platform while the app aims to deliver fast, simple checkout and personalised offers to customers.

Led · Series C · May 2016

orderbird builds an iPad-based point-of-sale (POS) system aimed at restaurants and caterers, positioning the register as a hub for payments, customer communication and data-driven services. The company says its product is evolving beyond a digital cash register toward CRM-like features and advanced data analysis. It recently recovered from a denial-of-service (DoS) attack prior to announcing new funding. Orderbird plans to use the new capital for product development and further expansion across Europe, including entering the French market this year. The company highlights strategic partnerships—most notably with Metro Group—that it says will help digitise the restaurant and catering industry and provide customer access. Payment-provider Concardis, a previous backer, remains involved and is positioned to support integration of payment and service features. Orderbird builds a tablet-based sales and point-of-sale platform that started by targeting restaurants. The company has integrated payments and customer features, including a past partnership with PayPal to enable check-ins and PayPal payments. It also works with partners for inventory management and tax accounting and plans to add more ancillary service partners rather than building everything in-house. Orderbird operates primarily in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and plans to expand to the rest of Europe and beyond. The company is prioritizing growth over near-term profitability—CEO Jakob Schreyer said they could have been break-even by next year but are focusing on growing the business. Financially, Orderbird has raised $18 million in total to date. Orderbird offers an iOS-based point-of-sale and ordering platform tailored to restaurants, enabling order capture, kitchen routing and payment processing on iOS devices. The product includes menu customization and analytics tools that let restaurateurs review data collected through transactions. It integrates with established POS vendors such as Epsom and Matrix POS. The company reports about 300 paying customers across Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Orderbird says it will use new funding to expand into additional European markets like the UK and to enter the U.S. later in the year. The company is trialing future features including customer self-ordering in-restaurant and pre-order functionality, and plans to hire more engineers and sales staff to build out the product and go-to-market capabilities.

Participated · Equity · Nov 2015

Zenchef builds an integrated SaaS platform that centralizes front‑of‑house operations for restaurants, including reservation and venue management, website and digital menu management, marketing tools, click & collect and mobile payments. The company emphasizes restaurant owner data ownership and a zero‑commission approach on reservations. Since its 2011 founding, Zenchef has processed nearly 50 million reservations—about 170 million diners overall, including more than 42 million in 2021—and supports over 7,000 restaurants across more than 15 countries, with leading positions in France, Belgium and Switzerland. Its customer base includes more than 180 Michelin‑starred chefs and major restaurant groups. Zenchef has recently integrated the startup Billee to launch Zenchef Pay and plans to roll out its first consumer mobile app this fall, initially covering over 1,500 Paris restaurants. With a new investment from PSG Equity, the company intends to accelerate European growth, expand B2B and B2C products and execute an ambitious recruitment campaign. Zenchef offers restaurants a full online marketing suite that includes website creation, online and offline reservation management, review tracking, customer feedback collection and automated customer communications. The company is rebranding from its previous name, 1001menus. Zenchef positions itself as an alternative to relying on third-party reservation platforms and general website builders by joining up the entire online marketing process for restaurants. It operates in France, the U.K. and Spain and currently claims 2,500 clients. The startup charges for its SaaS product (plans start at €79 per month) and also offers a free plan. Zenchef has passed €2 million in ARR and will use the new capital to pursue further international expansion, targeting 25,000 restaurants in Europe by 2018. 1001 Menus provides a platform enabling small businesses to manage their information across the Internet from a single interface. The service includes a website, a mobile site, and a Facebook app for adding menus to a Facebook fan page. An online tool lets business owners update listings across a network of more than 20 local directories and restaurant search engines. The company was founded in 2010 by Xavier Zeitoun, Thomas Zeitoun and Julien Balmont and is based in Paris, France. In November 2013 it raised €1.35m and intends to use the funds to expand its commercial efforts in France and Europe. No operating metrics or additional financial details were disclosed in the article.