Neurala Partners with IMA Group on AI for Manufacturing Automation

Vision artificial intelligence (AI) software company Neurala announced a new strategic partnership on October 20, 2020, with IMA Group, which designs and manufactures automation equipment for processing and packaging of pharmaceuticals and in other markets. The partnership will focus on field testing of AI used for monitoring and analyzing data collected through industrial internet of things (IIoT) systems.

“As the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) becomes commonplace—with dozens of sensors and cameras gathering product data, as well as basic diagnostics from industrial equipment—manufacturers critically need human-level AI that can extract actionable insights from that data at the compute edge,” said Max Versace, CEO and cofounder of Neurala, in the press release. “Data without AI is not useful, and off-the-shelf cloud-based AI is not cut out for the manufacturing floor. Unlike traditional AI solutions, Neurala’s technology is trained at the edge, enabling it to continuously learn based on manufacturers’ data as it varies across specific machines and production runs. We are incredibly excited to bring this technology together with IMA’s industry-leading solutions and expertise. Our new partnership will demonstrate just how far edge AI can go in solving industrial monitoring challenges on a global scale.”

“Today, factory floors are more complex than ever, and manufacturers are challenged when it comes to managing the extremely high volume of data they’re amassing,” said Dario Rea, director of Corporate Research and Innovation, IMA Group, in the press release. “To become even more competitive on the global stage, and to help manufacturers overcome this complexity, IMA must improve not only the quality of our products, but also, internal visibility on equipment health and productivity.”

Neurala will work with IMA to install the technology directly on industrial machines, at the compute edge, allowing operators to quickly and independently set up advanced AI systems without requiring specialized expertise. As part of the partnership, IMA has made a targeted investment in Neurala.

Source: Neurala​