How frustration around finding the right sofa led to my first investment in AI.

I had been looking to invest in an AI venture for a while, but wanted it to be the right opportunity. Something that has a real business impact with a broad practical application rather than servicing a niche market.

Earlier this year, I met Dr Sebastian Spiegler, the founder and CEO of Cadeera, which would become my inaugural investment in the AI space.

On our very first Zoom call, right in the middle of lockdown, he asked me about my last furniture purchase. I was trying to buy a bog-standard sofa and it took me two weeks of searching. Even though I am a real furniture enthusiast.

“Imagine”, Sebastian said, “a completely different purchasing journey. No more relying on basic keyword searches or scrolling through hundreds of irrelevant products.”

“Instead, you are guided by an intelligent system that understands your preferences and quickly navigates you to the right product.”

“This is exactly what Cadeera does. We have built AI-powered product search and discovery for eCommerce that leverages all visual and semantic product information.”

The two things I care the most about when investing in startups are the team and the product.

Sebastian holds a PhD in Machine Learning and has broad experience in scaling deep tech startups. Through his extensive academic and professional network, he has brought together a unique team.

Together with his team, he has already built a robust solution and is continuously iterating with its early customers to ensure the best alignment and product-market fit.

Another important aspect for me is solving a real business problem with the right focus. Cadeera is starting in the underserved $700bn home decor market but its technology is much more widely applicable.

Cadeera helps eCommerce to improve its digital experience through the power of AI. Its product search and recommendation allows online retailers to personalise their shopping experience, and engage and convert customers more effectively. For buying teams, Cadeera provides data quality and auto-tagging services that facilitate data entry and make stock more findable.

Within the first year of its existence, the team has established a strong pipeline of prospects and customers globally and demonstrated real business impact by leveraging its AI-enabled product search and discovery.

Alongside the great traction, Cadeera has already gained market recognition highlighted by various publications including TechCrunch and Modern Retail.

Beyond that, the team was recently accepted into the prestigious UK accelerator MI Garage which is part of the Digital Catapult.

With a great first 12 months under their belt, I am really excited about how they are set for a fantastic seed round later this year.