AYES

Assistive Technology Softwareayes.ai

AYES is an Antwerp-based AI startup that develops software to help visually impaired users cross streets safely. Founded in 2021, the company raised €1M in pre-seed funding in 2022 and targets accessibility AI consumers in the Benelux region.

Company typePrivate
Founded2021
HeadquartersNew City, United States
Headcount1–10
GTM typeB2C
OfferingSoftware

What AYES does

AYES is an Antwerp, Belgium-based startup founded in 2021 that develops AI-powered software to help visually impaired users cross streets safely. The company's single core product combines artificial intelligence with what appears to be real-time environmental analysis to provide crossing guidance, positioning AYES in the niche but socially significant accessibility AI segment. The stated target customer is visually impaired individuals (a segment that includes roughly 1 in 4 Americans with a disability per the short-description claim), and the company frames its value proposition around safety and independent urban mobility.

The product is described as AI-powered software with domain specialization in street crossing; specific technical components such as model type, sensor stack, or on-device architecture are not disclosed in available sources. The company identifies a subscription/recurring revenue model, but pricing is not publicly disclosed and no paying customers or distribution partners are named. GTM is characterized as product-led growth, with a stated objective to significantly expand the user base following the November 2022 pre-seed round.

AYES is at the pre-seed stage, having raised €1 million led by id4 Ventures with participation from Angel Invest and Tiny Supercomputer Investment Company. The team comprises 1-10 employees and is led by co-founders Vincent Janssen and Willem Van de Mierop. Current operating geography is Benelux, and there is no public evidence of follow-on funding, partnerships with blindness associations, or municipal deployments. AYES remains an early-stage, single-product company with a clearly defined mission but limited disclosed commercial traction.

AYES firmographics

Firmographics

Name: AYES
Legal name: AYES
Website: https://ayes.ai
Company type: Private
Founded year: 2021
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 1–10 employees
Short description: AYES is an Antwerp-based AI startup that develops software to help visually impaired users cross streets safely. Founded in 2021, the company raised €1M in pre-seed funding in 2022 and targets accessibility AI consumers in the Benelux region.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

AYES industry classification

Industry

Product category: Assistive Technology Software
NAICS: Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities (62412)
SIC: Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)
akta.pro primary industry: Assistive Vision & Screen Access (Screen Readers, Magnification, Braille Displays/Notetakers) (EDAFAKAD)
akta.pro secondary industries: Consumer Navigation & Turn-by-Turn Apps (BPAMANAA), Autonomous Driving & ADAS Perception (HDAAAEAI)

Keywords

Assistive AI software
Accessibility technology
Visual impairment aids
AI navigation assistance
Mobility safety tools

Where AYES is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: New City
HQ country: United States
HQ region: North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

AYES business model

Business model

GTM type: B2C
Offering type: Software
Cost components: Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

AI Software for Accessibility: Software solution for visually impaired users to assist with street crossing. Revenue model details not yet disclosed.

Go-to-market motion1 record

AYES product offering

Product offering

Core offering

AYES develops AI-powered software that assists visually impaired users in crossing streets safely. The product leverages artificial intelligence to provide real-time guidance and safety support for pedestrians with visual impairments navigating urban environments.

Product overview

AYES offers a single AI-powered software product designed to assist visually impaired users in crossing streets safely. The company is a startup based in Antwerp that raised €1 million in pre-seed funding to develop and expand this assistive technology.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Companies that use AYES

Customer profile

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

AYES technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

AYES partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

AYES competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Direct peers

Aira: Aira provides on-demand, agent-assisted visual interpretation for blind users via smart glasses and smartphone cameras, including help crossing streets — a subscription-based commercial model directly comparable to AYES' positioning.
OrCam Technologies: OrCam builds wearable AI devices (MyEye, OrCam Read) that read text, recognize faces, and identify products for blind and visually impaired users — a hardware-led competitor addressing similar accessibility use cases with a premium commercial offering.
Be My Eyes: Be My Eyes connects blind and low-vision users with sighted volunteers (and AI) via live video for visual assistance tasks including navigation and obstacle identification — a direct competitor in AI-augmented visual assistance for the blind.

Emerging players

Wayfindr: Wayfindr develops open standards and audio-based wayfinding technology for blind users in transit and indoor environments, overlapping with AYES on the navigation-for-the-blind theme with a focus on transit and venue deployments.
GoodMaps: GoodMaps provides indoor and outdoor accessible maps and turn-by-turn navigation for people with disabilities, including blind users — a peer in the accessible navigation space with similar AI and mapping technology.
NaviLens: NaviLens uses computer-vision-readable codes and a smartphone app to provide wayfinding and contextual information for blind users in transit stations, museums, and urban environments — an adjacent AI-accessibility solution focused on infrastructure integration.

Regional players

Lazarillo: Lazarillo is a GPS-based accessible navigation app for blind and visually impaired users, with strong presence in Latin America and Spain — a comparable subscription navigation app for the visually impaired in a different geographic market.

Broad incumbents

Seeing AI (Microsoft): Microsoft's Seeing AI app narrates the visual world for blind users through a smartphone camera, including scene description and people/object recognition — a comparable AI-vision accessibility product from a large platform player.
Google Lookout: Google's Lookout app uses computer vision to describe surroundings for blind users, including identifying objects, text, and obstacles — a free, OS-adjacent competitor that overlaps with AYES' AI-assistive vision value proposition.
Microsoft Soundscape: Microsoft's Soundscape project provides 3D audio-based navigation for blind and low-vision users, including street crossing and exploration cues — the most direct large-platform parallel to AYES' crossing-assistance use case.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

AYES financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

AYES leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

AYES funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors3 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

AYES M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about AYES

What does AYES do?

Is AYES a public or private company?

AYES is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.

When was AYES founded?

AYES was founded in 2021. It employs 1 to 10 people.

Where is AYES based?

AYES is headquartered in New City, United States, in the North America region.

How does AYES make money?

One revenue line is on record: AI Software for Accessibility.

Who are AYES's main competitors?

Direct peers on record are Aira, OrCam Technologies and Be My Eyes. Emerging players are Wayfindr, GoodMaps and NaviLens. Lazarillo is listed as a regional player. Broad incumbents are Seeing AI (Microsoft), Google Lookout and Microsoft Soundscape.

Does AYES have an API?

No public API is recorded for AYES.

What industry is AYES in?

AYES's product category is Assistive Technology Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAFAKAD, Assistive Vision & Screen Access (Screen Readers, Magnification, Braille Displays/Notetakers), with a secondary code of BPAMANAA, Consumer Navigation & Turn-by-Turn Apps. Its NAICS code is 62412 and its SIC code is 7373.