Walmart Bolsters Natural Language Processing Capabilities with Aspectiva Acquisition
Walmart has acquired Aspectiva, an Israeli-based start-up, for an undisclosed sum. As part of the acquisition, Aspectiva will be joining Walmart’s Store N° 8, the incubation arm launched by the retailer in 2017 to uncover the ideas that will transform the future of commerce.
Aspectiva’s natural language processing capabilities will help Walmart further enhance the end-to-end shopping experience.
“Aspectiva has developed incredibly sophisticated machine learning techniques and natural language processing capabilities, both of which are areas we believe will have profound impact on how customers will shop in the future,” said Lori Flees, principal, Store N° 8. “Israel is a hotbed of tech talent and innovation. We’re thrilled to join the growing community of entrepreneurs in Israel and see it expand within Aspectiva.
This is the latest activity for Walmart with Israeli-based technology companies. The company has also made a strategic investment in Team8, an Israeli think tank and tech incubator, launched a joint venture with Eko, an interactive media and technology company with offices in Tel Aviv and New York, and recently joined The Bridge, a technology accelerator connecting global companies with the technology start-up community in Israel.
“Our team is extremely excited to be joining Store N° 8 and be part of Walmart’s most recent investment in Israel,” said Ezra Daya, CEO of Aspectiva. “Store N° 8’s record of innovation and of developing capabilities that will transform retail as we know it makes for the perfect environment to leverage Aspectiva’s technology throughout the shopping funnel”
Using Artificial Intelligence technologies, Aspectiva analyzes consumer opinions, turning them into comprehensive and valuable insights, helping e-commerce visitors make informed decisions and resulting in increased online conversion rates.
It was founded in 2013 by Daya and Eyal Hurwitz, both of whom were frustrated by the online search for products and services to meet their specific needs. Turning to customer reviews for advice, they were only left more confused by the massive amount of customer opinions that were oftentimes irrelevant to their own personal concerns. Ezra and Eyal found, however, that by analyzing consumer opinions and extracting insights with their innovative technology, they could personalize search results and revolutionize the online retail space.