AI startup raises $4 million in seed round, partners with LBC Express

Expedock moves thousands of freight containers a week. Its software converts paper-based documents or scans into structured data for freight systems and eliminates unwanted costs due to manual errors.

Expedock, an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered supply-chain startup, raised $4 million in its seed round and closed an enterprise deal with LBC Express.

The startup will use its AI technology to automate the booking process between containers and carriers in order to expedite the movement of international goods.

These developments follow a $2.5 million investment led by Ali Partovi, chief executive of “communal” venture fund Neo, who has previously backed Airbnb, Dropbox, Facebook, and Uber.

Expedock is also backed by executives at eBay, Foodpanda, coins.ph, Salesforce, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram. The funding will be used for expansion and for product development to accommodate its growing number of international clients.

“We’ve seen firsthand how the errors in the first mile of shipping lead to costly corrections amounting up to $25,000. Freight forwarders have had to manually encode and process significant amounts of paperwork which, with one mistake, could cost a company thousands of dollars to correct,” said co-founder King Alandy C. Dy in a press statement. “Our technology comes in to convert any paper-based documents or scans into structured data for their freight systems. Our software provides the infrastructure for their data, thereby eliminating unwanted costs due to manual errors.”

Its system, Expedock Nuance Technology, performs tasks by simulating human intelligence and removing the need for manual data entry and processing via workflow automation. The huge volume of data and documentation needed to move products from Point A to B previously made manual data entry and extraction cumbersome for businesses in the supply chain industry. Expedock’s technology eliminates the need for data extraction and data entry work, decreases turnaround time by up to ten times, and improves data accuracy.

Co-founded in 2019 by Filipinos Dy and Jeff Tan, together with AI specialist Rui Aguiar, the company moves thousands of freight containers a week and counts a.hartrodt, Rose Containerline, Premier Services Italia, Andalin, Fremura, CNT and MHM Global among its international clients. — Patricia B. Mirasol