Retail giant Gap acquires Israeli AI analytics company CB4
Firm offers predictive data tools to help retailers, such as grocery chains and apparel stores, boost sales and manage inventory
Ricky Ben-David is a Times of Israel editor and reporter
US apparel giant Gap has acquired Israeli AI company CB4, a developer of predictive analytics tools that offer data-driven insights and recommendations for retail businesses like grocery and retail chains.
The agreement was announced late Monday. The terms of the acquisition were not disclosed but Israeli business daily Calcalist estimated the deal at approximately $150 million.
Headquartered in New York with offices in Tel Aviv, CB4 launched its operations in 2014 with a $6 million Series A round, followed by a $16 million Series B in 2019. Its investors include Sequoia Capital and Pereg Ventures, a New York-based venture capital firm focused on early-stage US and Israeli startups in the B2B data space.
The company developed an AI-powered platform that helps retailers “generate new sales by making meaningful corrections to shelf visibility and inventory,” CB4 says. Its technology has been implemented by retailers including Levi’s, Urban Outfitters, and US supermarket chain PriceRite.
In 2020, CB4 said that its technology was active in some 1,500 stores worldwide.
CB4 CEO Yoni Benshaul said in a statement Monday that the company was “excited to see how our team can drive even broader and deeper impact…[on a] global scale.”
The Israeli company employs over 60 people across its offices.
Earlier this year, CB4 was named to CB Insights’ inaugural Retail Tech 100 ranking showcasing the 100 most promising B2B retail tech companies in the world.
Sally Gilligan, chief growth transformation officer and head of the Strategic Growth Office at Gap, said in the statement that the retail giant “believes artificial intelligence and machine learning will shape the future of our industry.”
“Gap has experience working with CB4’s world-class data scientists, so we understand the impact and the wide applications their science can have across sales, inventory and consumer insights, as well as its potential to unlock value and enhance the customer experience,” she added.
In 2020, Gap operated over 3,000 stores worldwide with annual revenue of more than $13 billion, according to Statista research.
Gap said that since “moving to the cloud in October 2020, Gap Inc. has increased investments in technology to enable growth and innovation that can impact its entire portfolio of brands.”
