PreAct Technologies, a developer of near-field software-definable flash lidar, will acquire Gestoos, a software developer based in Barcelona, Spain. Gestoos’ software platform enables users with no specialized training to quickly generate AI algorithms that address their use cases. PreAct’s sensor solutions target automotive, trucking, robotics, and other industrial applications. Gestoos technology is currently being used or evaluated in those applications, the companies said, as well as for use in activity monitoring, industrial safety, cargo logistics, consumer electronics, and other areas. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Jeffrey Hannah, CCO of automotive technology research and consulting firm SBD Automotive, said the acquisition should provide PreAct with a greater ability to intelligently process sensor data on the edge. “This move also broadens PreAct’s IP suite allowing them to become less reliant on system integrators to deliver new applications as well as differentiated software-defined services,” Hannah said. Using time-of-flight technology, PreAct’s TrueSense product creates near-field scans to anticipate collisions. The technology enables measures such as early deployment of airbags. Courtesy of Luminate via PreAct Technologies. According to PreAct CEO Paul Drysch, combining a powerful AI algorithm development platform with flash lidar will help customers quickly solve difficult use cases. “For example, current in-cabin and cargo monitoring solutions were falling well short of delivering the kind of performance that OEMs and fleets are looking for,” Drysch said. “This is a real problem given the changing regulatory environment requiring accurate and stable cabin monitoring. “The Gestoos AI development platform comes pre-integrated with our flash lidar solution and a development environment making AI training tractable by our customers’ own engineers with minimal hand-holding.” When coupled with PreAct’s flash lidar, algorithm development tasks can be accomplished in a few hours, as opposed to multiple weeks. The acquisition comes less than one week after PreAct announced it raised $14 million in series B funding, and after PreAct released its T30P flash lidar product last month. In the Dec. 6 product release, Drysch said that the company had multiple production projects in the works. “We’ve spent the last three years creating a solution that fulfills the need of software-defined vehicles, providing the most value over the long term, and our work has been validated by Tier 1s and OEMs,” Drysch said. In 2021, PreAct earned the top prize in the fourth cohort of the Luminate NY Program’s Innovation Finals Competition.