As part of the ongoing crowdfund campaign to keep OpenCV free to all, we’re doing a series of interviews with people and organizations who support OpenCV by becoming members.

Intuitivo, an innovator in Autonomous Points of Purchase (A-POPs), is a growing startup whose founder José Benítez comes from the OpenCV community. After launching the company, José was recently featured in the MIT Technology Review Innovators Under 35 list. This year the company became OpenCV Bronze members. OpenCV Director of Creative Phil Nelson interviewed José over Slack for this update.

Tell the folks who you are, and about your startup Intuitivo

I am the Founder and Director of AI at Intuitivo, where we harness the power of computer vision for advanced applications. Intuitivo is at the forefront of retail innovation, offering a disruptive cloud-based AI and machine learning system for transaction processing. Our technology is a game-changer in the market, enabling the simultaneous operation of millions of autonomous points of purchase. This revolutionizes the consumer experience, surpassing the capabilities of traditional vending machines by delivering cost-effective, low-maintenance, and easily deployable solutions that are tenfold cheaper.

Why do you believe it’s important to support OpenCV?

OpenCV isn’t just the world’s largest computer vision library because of its robust code—it thrives because of the community that learns from it, contributes to it, and supports it. In this vibrant ecosystem, each one of us is both a student and a teacher. By supporting one another, we don’t just build better software; we build a better future for computer vision.

What fascinates you about computer vision?

I am deeply passionate about computer vision because it mimics one of our most crucial senses—the eye. The versatility of computer vision models allows them to be applied to an extensive range of tasks, and I am thrilled at the prospect of a future driven by advanced vision models.

Anything coming soon from Intuitivo you want to tell people about?

We are developing sophisticated large-scale vision models, each tailored for a variety of tasks within the retail sector, enhancing efficiency and innovation.

Look into the near future, 3-5 years. What do you expect to be the biggest changes in Computer Vision and Artificial Intelligence?

Multimodality opens up a wealth of possibilities by integrating computer vision with other domains such as language processing, sensor technology, and voice recognition to create exceptionally robust applications. I believe this multidisciplinary approach represents the future of AI and computer vision as a core.

You have talked about how OpenCV Courses had a big effect on your life. Tell us a bit about that.

OpenCV courses have been instrumental in my journey. They provided me with a solid foundation in computer vision, enhancing my technical expertise and allowing me to innovate within the retail sector. The hands-on approach and real-world applications covered in these courses significantly contributed to my professional development and the success of Intuitivo.

Any final thoughts for the folks reading?

To those reading, I would say: Stay curious and embrace the continuous learning journey. The field of computer vision is rapidly evolving, and the opportunities to create impactful solutions are vast. Let’s innovate responsibly and strive to make technology accessible and beneficial for all.

OpenCV thanks Intuitivo and José for supporting OpenCV as Bronze Members and sitting with us for this interview.