eCAPITAL Portfolio Company Brighter AI Acquired by Leading International Technology Group
PORTFOLIO NEWSThe transaction marks a significant exit in the European deep-tech sector and underscores the growing global demand for privacy-focused AI solutions.
Founded in 2017 as one of Europe’s first GenAI startups, Brighter AI specializes in visual anonymization of image and video data. The company offers privacy-by-design solutions for AI-powered systems across mobility, security, and smart city applications. Its clients include major players from the automotive industry, the public sector, and the digital infrastructure space.
A strategic turning point was the founding team’s early decision to pursue a modular, B2B-oriented platform strategy. This approach enabled technological scalability and laid the foundation for international positioning – ultimately paving the way for the successful exit.
eCAPITAL had been a shareholder and the first independent institutional investor since 2019.
As one of the very first GenAI startups, eCAPITAL was instrumental in fueling our growth from the beginning. The close and collaborative relationship – especially with Dirk Seewald – has shown over many years just how crucial entrepreneurial venture capital partners are to the success of deep-tech companies.
Marian Gläser, CEO and Co-Founder, Brighter AI
Brighter AI has solved the fundamental problem of the privacy-compliant use and storage of image and video data, successfully positioned the solution in the market, and laid the foundation for the next growth phase with the acquisition. What the founders Marian Gläser and Patrick Kern have achieved together with their team shows how relevant European AI can be in a global context. We are grateful to have supported this journey from the early stage through to exit.
Dirk Seewald, Managing Partner, eCAPITAL AG
This exit marks the beginning of a new growth phase – for Brighter AI and for a technology that enables privacy-compliant AI applications at an international level.
About Brighter AI
At Brighter AI, we are on the mission to protect every identity in public. Our leading anonymization solutions for video data are based on state-of-the-art artificial intelligence. For Deep Natural Anonymization, brighter AI was named “Europe’s Hottest AI Startup” by Nvidia. Established in 2017 within the automotive industry, we are today serving companies in various sectors and are supported by outstanding investors.
About eCAPITAL
Founded in 1999, eCAPITAL is an entrepreneur-led venture capital investor focusing on early- and growth-stage deep-tech companies with a positive impact on society. eCAPITAL is based in Germany and invests with its own funds with a total volume of over € 400 million in the areas of Sustainability, Enterprise Software, Cybersecurity, IoT and New Materials. In addition to financial resources, eCAPITAL offers its portfolio companies strategic support and access to an international network of entrepreneurs, scientists, investors and founders and was lead investor in various deep-tech companies such as sonnen, Novaled or Jedox, which were sold very successfully to international corporates or investors.
Contact
eCAPITAL ENTREPRENEURIAL PARTNERS AG
Bettina Schäfer
Hafenweg 24
48155 Münster, Germany
Tel.: +49 251 70 37 67 0
Email: info@ecapital.vc
www.ecapital.vc