Munich Startup: Who are you and what do you do? Please briefly introduce yourself and your solution!
Fotonow: At Fotonow, we bring visual quality control from the end of the process chain directly to the source of defects, detecting visual defects in real time. Fotonow was developed by us, Muhammad Zeeshan Karamat (Co-Founder and CTO) and Florian Ziesche (Co-Founder and CEO), in collaboration with a premium automobile manufacturer as a feedback provider and tested for more than two years in several plants.
Zeeshan (26) is originally from Lahore, Pakistan, and came to Munich in 2016 after being barred from studying at Stanford due to US policy. This spring, he taught anomaly detection to MIT and Stanford students after presenting a self-developed smartphone solution for detecting COVID-19 to more than 200 million viewers on CNN and national television in India and Pakistan.
Florian (30) "grew up" in his grandfather's mechanical engineering company, completed his M.Sc. in Technology and Management at the Technical University of Munich, led an AI project at BNP, and founded a consulting firm focused on AI and computer vision. We met at a Celonis hackathon.
Improved functionality, higher accuracy and low acquisition costs
What sets Fotonow apart from other visual quality control solutions is that our solution can be used with any camera or smartphone and is ready to use, as defects (scratches, dents, color discrepancies, missing parts, etc.) are detected across the entire image area, regardless of the camera position. This allows today's expensive applications to be replaced by our AI-based solution, which offers improved functionality and greater accuracy at a fraction of the initial cost.
Munich Startup: But that's been around for a long time!
Fotonow: Our application has significant advantages over current state-of-the-art solutions. This includes the fact that Fotonow can be used immediately with any camera—even with an older smartphone. Other solutions take several months to become operational and are often unavailable when they are most needed.
“No other system has been able to work in areas with strong vibrations and constantly changing light.”
Additionally, our solution operates in challenging environmental conditions. No other system has been able to operate in areas with strong vibrations and constantly changing light. This leads to expensive rework and recalls because errors are only detected at a later date.
Fotonow detects every defect across the entire image area. Our self-service technology makes it easy to set up new use cases independently of the customer's IT department or quality control specialists. Other solutions can only view a small area and require multiple cameras, resulting in high capital expenditures.
Munich Startup: What has been your biggest challenge so far?
Fotonow: The biggest challenge, both financially and emotionally, was probably the first few months of Covid, as we had no opportunity to install and test our solution in production, and many orders were postponed. We have since emerged from the crisis much richer in experience and much stronger: we were able to improve our company structure and processes, initiate collaborations with partners (TU Munich, Stanford, MIT), and participate in four accelerator programs (German Accelerator, Xpreneurs Incubator, Alchemist Accelerator, Techfounders), acquire a number of new customers, close an initial financing and gain coaches such as Doug Brent (CTO Trimble), Chuck DeVita (President Growth Strategy, Stanford Lecturer) and Christine Heuwing (MD Alcara, startup coach), which we are proud of.
Expected annual turnover 2021: 1,500.00 euros
Munich Startup: Let’s get down to business: How is business going?
Fotonow: We invested €100,000 in Fotonow from our consulting business and launched our product this year after two years of testing. COVID pushed our timeline back by about six months. However, we now have several well-known customers and expect revenue of €250,000 this year and €1,500,000 next year.
Munich Startup: What does Munich mean to you?
Fotonow: Munich is a beautiful city and a driver of innovation. We are proud to live in such a great city and, as graduates of the Technical University of Munich, to not only strengthen Munich's innovative power but also to represent it. This is also demonstrated by the many startup accelerators, a growing startup community, and investors who help these companies become fast-growing, international companies.
We will be a unicorn from Munich
The UnternehmerTUM network with the Xpreneurs Incubator, the Techfounders Accelerator and Industrial Innovators as investment partners were particularly supportive and helpful for us.
Last but not least, partnerships with strong companies such as BMW, Festo and other automobile manufacturers and suppliers offer excellent opportunities for the growth of young companies.
Munich Startup: How can your startup become the next unicorn? Or will we see you soon at Epic Fail Night?
Fotonow: We're becoming a unicorn from Munich! Our solution offers tremendous customer value and can replace established visual quality control solutions requiring over a million euros in investment. There's great interest in the new market and the technology, the potential is enormous, and we're very confident about the future.
Munich Startup: Hidden Champion or Shooting Star?
Fotonow: We are currently still a hidden champion because we offer the best technology with the greatest customer benefits, especially for the automotive sector. We are already well-known in the Munich area, Silicon Valley, and Mexico.
