A UCL alumnus has secured $2 million in seed funding for his startup Camera Intelligence, which is developing an AI-powered camera platform designed to simplify professional content creation.
Camera Intelligence (formerly Alice Camera), co-founded by Vishal Kumar, graduate of the UCL Bartlett Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis, is building an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered camera platform that simplifies professional content creation. By integrating an intelligent Large Language Model (LLM)-driven AI assistant into a mirrorless camera system which seamlessly connects to smartphones, Camera Intelligence empowers creators and e-commerce businesses to produce high-quality content with ease.
Users can control camera settings using voice demands and can perform editing tasks like colour grading and style selection directly from the device, removing the need for complex software or technical expertise.
The $2 million seed funding raised by Camera Intelligence includes investment from venture capital firms Betaworks, F4 Fund, Next Wave via Flybridge, 7pc ventures and Digital Catapult.
Vishal Kumar said: "Producing engaging, high-quality content is a necessity for solo creators and small businesses, but they are already stretched thin and juggling multiple business demands. Content creation tools are fragmented, and users producing social media content for the first time struggle with steep learning curves for both mirrorless camera operation and editing software.
"With a radical new interface that leverages AI, Camera Intelligence are bringing assistive content editing capabilities directly into their camera system and aim to dramatically lower barriers to entry."
Vishal completed a Spatial Data Science and Visualisation Master's degree at UCL in 2017.
While at UCL, Vishal attended the dedicated entrepreneurship programmes for research students, staff and recent graduates run by UCL Innovation & Enterprise (called SPERO).
After forming his business, he was then able to set up a fully-fledged company located at BaseKX, UCL's entrepreneurship hub. As part of UCL's Hatchery incubator programme there he received free, tailored support and dedicated office space helping to fast-track the development of Camera Intelligence.
He said: "At that time, we were doing a lot of field work and talking to different people and mentors. If we were really going to build this very complicated product, we wanted to be sure there was enough demand out there.
"There was massive support from UCL. The free office space and all the connections to the UCL ecosystem were hugely valuable. There were a lot of people we could talk to about intellectual property, commercialisation and innovation grant funding, among other things."
Professor Geraint Rees, UCL Vice-Provost (Research, Innovation & Global Engagement) said: "Congratulations to Camera Intelligence on this significant investment and achievement.
"Vishal's success with Camera Intelligence exemplifies the power of combining cutting-edge research with entrepreneurial ambition.
"At UCL, we are proud to support innovators like Vishal through our enterprise programmes and entrepreneurship hubs like BaseKX, helping them turn bold ideas into transformative technologies.
"This funding milestone is a testament to the strength of UCL's innovation ecosystem and its role in shaping the future of AI-driven content creation."
