ModelOp, a startup developing AI software and development services for enterprises, today announced that it has raised $6 million. It plans to use the capital to support demand for its products in a market that IDC anticipates will be worth $8 billion by 2022.
The term ModelOps refers to the process of cycling analytical models from data science teams to production teams in a cadence of deployment and updates, and it typically requires extensive domain knowledge on the part of the engineers involved. ModelOp’s platform aims to streamline this by cataloging models and automating deployment, monitoring, and governance processes across customers’ organizations.
Indeed, according to Algorithmia, nearly 55% of companies haven’t yet deployed a machine learning model, and a full one-fifth are still evaluating use cases or plan to move models into production within the year. That jibes with a recent study conducted by analysts at IDC, which found that of the organizations already using AI, only 25% have developed an enterprise-wide AI strategy. Firms responding to that survey blamed the cost of AI solutions and a lack of qualified workers, as well as biased data and unrealistic expectations.
With ModelOp Center Version 2, which launched in general availability today, developers can benchmark model performance on multiple platforms while ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements. The company’s team optionally works with customers to create blueprints and “industrialize” the use of AI across their organizations, assessing the current state of maturity and prioritizing recommendations based on critical needs. After establishing key metrics and processes and evaluating return on investment for the ModelOps investment, ModelOp develops a comprehensive roadmap for implementation.
To date, customers and ModelOp’s consultancy team have created models to predict delinquent payment behavior, municipal securities pricing information, and key economic events. ModelOp says its clients include five of the top 10 largest financial institutions as well as Fortune 500 manufacturers, insurers, and credit bureaus.
Valley Capital Partners led Chicago-based ModelOp’s latest fundraising round, which saw participation from Silicon Valley Data Capital. As a part of the deal, Valley Capital managing partner Steve O’Hara joined the company’s board of directors. ModelOp also expanded its executive team with three new appointments: Sheau-ming Ross, as chief financial officer; Mark LeMonnier, as vice president of software engineering; and Linda Maggi, as vice president of marketing.
“As enterprise Model Debt grows quickly, the emphasis is now on getting AI models out of pilot and into production, and this is driving rapid growth in the market for ModelOps,” CEO Pete Foley told VentureBeat via email. “With this latest round of funding, we’re well positioned to grow and ensure that our platform and delivery capabilities stay well ahead of competitive offerings and can accommodate the evolving regulatory landscape.”
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