Israeli AI shipping analytics and risk management company Windward is set to begin trading on London's Alternative Investment Market (AIM) tomorrow at a company valuation of £127 million. The company reports that it has raised a gross £34.5 million from institutional investors at £1.55 per share.
Windward was founded in 2010 by CEO Ami Daniel and Matan peled who manages operations in the US. The company's chairman since 2018 has been former BP CEO Lord Browne. Windward's investors include Aleph, XL Innovate and Altshuler Shaham.
Windward has developed AI technology for analyzing maritime risks by mapping and analyzing all the information about shipping traffic. The company's headquarters is in Israel with offices in the UK, US, Denmark and the UAE.
According to the company the software solutions that it has developed and markets provides real-time data about shipping traffic and allows users to make decisions based on the information and manage their risks. The company provides its platform on an SaaS (software-as-a-service) business model paid for by an annual subscription. Windward's customers include oil majors like BP and Shell, banks like HSBC and Danske Bank as well as government agencies in the US and Europe.
Windward had revenue of $14.6 million in 2020 compared with $5.9 million in 2017. The company said that the SaaS model gives it gross profitability of 79%.
Windward CEO Ami Daniel said, "We are delighted with the support we have received, providing us with the firepower to increase investment in our innovative AI-powered platform. Having invested over $25m into the platform to date and secured many of the world’s leading blue-chip maritime industry participants as customers, we are confident we have built strong foundations for future growth."
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on December 5, 2021.
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