Yehuda Holtzman serves because the CEO of Cipia. The corporate focuses on picture processing and AI, with in depth experience in analysis, implementation, and optimization of algorithms for embedded platforms and the in-car automotive trade. Cipia is headquartered in Israel, with international workplaces in the USA and China.
Yehuda brings over 25 years of enterprise, technological and managerial expertise as a CEO of know-how and communications firms to steer Cipia. In his most up-to-date function, Holtzman served as CEO of On Observe Improvements Ltd. (OTI), a world supplier of close to area communication (NFC) and cashless fee options. In prior years he served as CEO of Mobilogy, overseeing its sale to the American ESW Capital fund. Yehuda was additionally a co-founder of the software program firm ExploreGate, the place he served as CEO from 2012 to 2016, in addition to co-founder of MobileAccess, the place he served as President of the corporate by means of its acquisition by Corning Included In 2011. Yehuda has a grasp’s diploma in administration from Ben-Gurion College and a bachelor’s diploma in electronics engineering from the College of Brighton in England.
Are you able to elaborate on Cipia’s imaginative and prescient for the way forward for in-cabin sensing options and the way you propose to realize it?
Cipia’s long-term imaginative and prescient leverages the alternatives and enterprise fashions created by every step on the way in which to totally autonomous vehicles. Specifically, progresses by means of three foremost phases:
First, we’re targeted on lowering accidents by monitoring the motive force and elevating the alarm if they’re drained or distracted. Subsequent, we’ll transfer to semi-autonomous autos, the place our methods turn out to be much more essential as drivers might have to shortly take again management of the automobile. Lastly, in totally autonomous autos, we’ll shift to enhancing the in-car expertise by means of know-how that acknowledges the automotive’s occupants and remembers their preferences.
How has your earlier expertise at OTI and different tech firms ready you in your function at Cipia, and what are the most important challenges you’ve confronted since changing into CEO of Cipia?
My expertise managing a number of progress firms has well-prepared me to steer Cipia, particularly throughout this vital section within the firm’s lifecycle. I’m significantly accustomed to the challenges and alternatives that include this stage. The twin give attention to each increasing the corporate and establishing a sustainable progress technique is important. For example, since I joined Cipia, now we have elevated our gross margin whereas greater than doubling the variety of automotive producers amongst our prospects. Our objective – and our largest problem – is to be the chief in our area, and considered one of our key benefits on this technology-driven market is Cipia’s in depth expertise with laptop imaginative and prescient and AI. The chance to use my experience in a market phase targeted on saving lives makes my work particularly significant.
How does Cipia’s know-how differentiate itself from different driver and occupancy monitoring methods in the marketplace?
Cipia’s laptop imaginative and prescient AI is constructed on in depth expertise with edge processing, which has lean {hardware} necessities as a constraint from the design section. This implies our algorithms are optimized to require fewer {hardware} sources, enabling deployment in methods that in the end price much less to our prospects and allow wider deployment.
Are you able to clarify the benefits of lean edge processing in Cipia’s options?
The benefit of lean edge processing is twofold. First, it facilitates decrease system prices since fewer {hardware} sources are required. Second, it brings extra capabilities to the sting, which means that extra processing can occur domestically, guaranteeing no connectivity is required, and the information doesn’t must be transmitted elsewhere for processing. On the planet of automotive security methods, this can be a arduous requirement. It allows low latency, security, and safety.
With distracted driving being a number one explanation for accidents, how efficient are Cipia’s options in lowering such incidents?
Very.
To present only one instance of the information we’ve seen, in accordance with the director of transportation at a serious beverage firm, earlier than utilizing Cipia, an amazing 86% of their accidents had been attributed to human error. This firm carried out Cipia’s resolution designed for fleets and noticed a 90% discount in telephone use whereas driving and a 70% lower in accidents.
How does Cipia guarantee its applied sciences adjust to the newest GSR and Euro NCAP necessities?
Cipia employs complete validation strategies, together with on-track and on-road testing of its choices, to make sure full compliance with regulatory and security commonplace necessities. Amassing the required information in accordance with the varied protocols takes time and sources, however that’s a part of the profit a long-time supplier of driver monitoring methods affords. We’re additionally a member of the Euro NCAP tier 2 DMS suppliers workgroup and are very happy with our contribution to security by means of this vital work.
Past security, what are some potential purposes of Cipia’s AI know-how that might improve the driving expertise?
Cipia’s underlying software program allows personalized experiences for drivers and passengers. A few of the options automotive producers can implement with Cipia embody mouth monitoring for voice instructions, guaranteeing the automobile responds solely to the motive force. Infotainment interplay detection, which tailors automobile controls based mostly on which person is interacting.
Driver’s gaze detection would stop distractions by pausing video content material when the motive force is peeking on the display. These are only a few of the handfuls of options enabled by laptop imaginative and prescient AI that will improve the driving expertise.
How does Cipia make sure the privateness and safety of the information processed by its in-cabin sensing options?
Cipia’s embedded options are totally personal and safe. Our options analyze the video stream in real-time, translating it to metadata. No photos are saved, recorded, or despatched from the machine. For TSPs and Fleets, the shopper might select whether or not to obtain text-based alerts solely or embody video snippets earlier than and after an occasion. Below each circumstances, Cipia doesn’t obtain or retailer video information of any sort.
What traits do you foresee within the automotive AI and laptop imaginative and prescient trade over the following decade?
Trying ahead, I imagine the trade will proceed to give attention to security, however we’ll additionally see a shift in the direction of enhancing the general in-car expertise. This might embody monitoring very important indicators, detecting if a driver is beneath the affect (even when they don’t seem to be actively driving), and bettering baby security options like detecting if a baby has been left within the automotive.
We’re additionally prone to see extra personalization, with AI methods studying particular person behaviors and preferences to create an optimum setting for every person. Nonetheless, it is vital to notice that the trade continues to be exploring these prospects, and nobody is aware of precisely what’s going to work finest.
A serious development we’re seeing is a shift in automotive producers’ enterprise fashions. They’re shifting away from merely promoting a automobile to promoting a set of options and companies on a recurring foundation. That is much like how the cell phone trade developed from promoting gadgets for making calls to promoting platforms for apps and companies. This shift presents new alternatives and challenges for firms like Cipia as we work to supply worth on this altering panorama.
Thanks for the nice interview, readers who want to study extra ought to go to Cipia.
