Written by World’s leading sports tech accelerator brings spotlight to media search startup and Future of Work for Video segment
BOSTON, MA, USA, April 1, 2021 — Axle AI, the leader in bringing radical simplicity to video search and collaboration, announced that it has received an investment from the prestigious Stadia Ventures, a sports venture capital firm and accelerator based in St. Louis. The investment, as well as a recent rash of acquisitions in the Future of Work for Video space (9 in the last 2 quarters, with acquirers including Apple, Quantum and Telestream) highlight Axle’s leadership in this rapidly growing market segment.
Founded in 2012, Axle’s mission has always been to provide radically simple, affordable media search software that works within standard web browsers and supports nearly any type of local and cloud storage. During 2020, the rapid adoption of remote work in the media industry due to COVID-19 has meant tremendous growth of the Future of Work space for media applications and uptake of the company’s software, which has now been deployed at over 650 sites worldwide.
In addition, Axle AI’s new SaaS pricing options, with bundles starting as low as $395 per month or $495 per month for leasing deals including HPE or Apple application server hardware, have brought on a new wave of adopters who are able to manage and search their high-resolution media via web browser for the first time. Cloud and hybrid cloud deployments of the software are also increasingly common, as the company’s Linux VM (virtual machine) version can be run in a number of cloud and private network environments.
In 2020, Axle announced a series of key partnerships with publicly-held storage vendors including NetApp, Dropbox and Infortrend, and privately-held vendors such as Qumulo, Spectralogic, Symply, Galileo Digital ACNC, and mLogic. The company has also rolled out integrations with the three major video editing platforms – Adobe Premiere Pro, Avid Media Composer and Apple Final Cut Pro X – representing a formidable Future of Work ecosystem for the video industry.
Industry analyst Larry Jordan said: “Axle.AI made its initial mark by providing easy to use, extensible and shareable media asset management (MAM) software for media creators. But, as the acquisition by Quantum makes clear, the market is far bigger than just M&E. The world tells stories using pictures. Every company in every industry is shifting to visual communications using digital images. As the numbers of visual images we need to label, track and share explode, companies like Axle AI become even more valuable and necessary.”
“We are thrilled to welcome the Axle team to the Stadia family of companies”, said Joe Pimmel, Managing Director of Stadia Ventures. “At a time when video content in sports and eSports is being produced at massive scale, Axle’s simple and scalable approach will lend itself to strong growth opportunities. We look forward to working closely with Sam and his colleagues.”
“Stadia Ventures’ investment is strategic”, said Sam Bogoch, CEO of Axle AI. “It clearly demonstrates the importance of the Future of Work for Video space, and the strategic importance of Axle AI’s core video search and workflow automation offerings”
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About Axle.AI:
Axle AI (https://axle.ai) is the recognized leader in developing radically simple media management software. Its solutions have helped over 650 media organizations improve the way they create, share and store digital video content with media management solutions that are easy to install, use and afford. Axle’s radically simple media management uniquely addresses a burgeoning need and has caught on rapidly among video professionals in sports, post-production, education, broadcast, corporate, house of worship, non-profit, advertising-marketing, and government organizations worldwide. Axle AI, Inc. is a privately held company; its founders have extensive industry experience in media asset management for creative applications. Investors include Jason Calacanis’s LAUNCH accelerator (also a customer) and Quake Capital. Learn more at https://axle.ai
About Stadia Ventures:
Launched in 2015, Stadia Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm that focuses on sports and esports companies. In addition, Stadia runs the Stadia Accelerator program, where up to 10 companies per year are selected to complete a rigorous 14-week program focused on strategy and business development. With 12 completed cohorts and over 50 portfolio companies, Stadia has grown from humble beginnings in St. Louis to become the leading global innovation hub for sports-related entrepreneurs and industry partners.