Pattern Recognition Company GmbH

What Pattern Recognition Company GmbH does

Pattern Recognition Company GmbH (PRC) is a privately held, founder-led AI company headquartered at the Innovations Campus Lübeck in Germany, founded in 2005 with academic roots at the University of Lübeck. The company develops computer vision and deep learning software for automated image analysis and understanding, commercialized under the Excire product brand.

PRC's product portfolio consists of three integrated offerings built on a proprietary deep learning stack. Excire Foto 2025 is a standalone desktop application providing AI-powered free-text natural language search and automated aesthetics evaluation for large photo and video collections. Excire Search 2026 is an Adobe Lightroom Classic plugin that extends intelligent catalog search and shot selection into the Adobe creative workflow. Excire Foto Office Edition targets enterprises with on-premises deployment for GDPR-friendly management of distributed corporate image archives.

The company sells software licenses directly through the excire.com web shop and distributes the Search product through the Adobe Lightroom Classic ecosystem, with enterprise sales for the Office Edition handled via direct engagement. Customers include professional photographers, photo enthusiasts, filmmakers and content creators, and businesses with large visual asset inventories. Leadership comprises Prof. Dr. Erhardt Barth and Prof. Dr. Thomas Martinetz as founders, Mathias Martinetz as Managing Director (CEO equivalent), and Dr. Thomas Käster as CTO. No external institutional investors, funding rounds, or parent company affiliations are disclosed.

Name

Pattern Recognition Company GmbH

Legal name

Pattern Recognition Company GmbH

Website

https://pattern-recognition-company.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Pattern Recognition Company GmbH is a Lübeck-based AI company that builds the Excire desktop and Adobe Lightroom Classic software suite for AI-powered search, aesthetics evaluation, and organization of large photo and video collections, serving professional photographers, enthusiasts, filmmakers, and enterprises.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Lübeck

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Software Licenses: Sale of photo management software products including Excire Foto 2025, Excire Search 2026, and Excire Foto Office Edition, offered as downloadable desktop applications with perpetual or subscription licensing options
2. Enterprise Software Sales: Excire Foto Office Edition specifically targets businesses requiring automated photo asset management, suggesting enterprise licensing or volume purchase options

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

PRC develops and sells AI-powered photo management software under the Excire brand, using deep learning and computer vision to organize, search, and evaluate large photo and video collections. Its offerings include Excire Foto 2025 for photographers, Excire Search 2026 as an Adobe Lightroom Classic plugin, and Excire Foto Office Edition for enterprise deployment with local data processing.

Product overview

Pattern Recognition Company GmbH (PRC) offers the Excire photo management software suite, a family of AI-powered image organization products built on deep learning technology. The portfolio consists of three integrated offerings: Excire Foto 2025 serves individual photographers as a standalone application with AI-powered free text search and aesthetics evaluation; Excire Search 2026 functions as an Adobe Lightroom Classic plugin extending intelligent catalog search capabilities to the Lightroom workflow; and Excire Foto Office Edition addresses enterprise needs for automated, structured management of distributed corporate photo archives. All products leverage PRC's core computer vision and deep learning technologies developed from its university roots at the University of Lübeck.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Excire: Excire is the product brand for PRC's photo management software, including Excire Foto 2025, Excire Search 2026, and Excire Foto Office Edition. These products provide AI-powered image organization, search, and management for photographers, enterprises, and organizations.

Products and services

• Excire Foto 2025 AI-powered desktop photo management software for photographers and enthusiasts with large photo and video collections; uses AI for free-text search and automated aesthetics evaluation to find and select the best images.
• Excire Search 2026 Adobe Lightroom Classic plugin that provides intelligent catalog search, efficient organization, and targeted selection of the best shots within the Lightroom workflow, for photo enthusiasts, professional photographers, filmmakers, and memory keepers.
• Excire Foto Office Edition Enterprise edition of Excire Foto for companies managing large volumes of image material; enables automated and structured merging of distributed photo archives with local deployment, ensuring data privacy.

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

AI capability5 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• AdobecoreTechnology or IntegrationExcire Search 2026 is designed as the best plugin for Adobe Lightroom Classic, providing intelligent catalog search and image organization capabilities within the Adobe creative workflow environment.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Google Photos: Google Photos is a free/cheap cloud photo management service with AI-powered search, face recognition, and automatic organization at massive scale. It is the primary free alternative competing with Excire for enthusiast and small-business photo library use cases.
• Adobe: Adobe's Lightroom Classic is the dominant professional photography workflow platform and the host application for PRC's Excire Search plugin. Adobe is both a critical distribution partner and a competitive threat as it embeds more AI (Sensei/Firefly) features natively into its photo products.
• Apple Photos: Apple Photos is the default photo management application across iPhone, iPad, and Mac with on-device AI for search, memories, and organization. It competes with Excire in the consumer/prosumer segment, particularly among users already invested in the Apple ecosystem.

Direct peers

• Photo Mechanic: Photo Mechanic is a professional photo workflow tool focused on fast ingest, culling, and metadata handling for working photographers. It overlaps with Excire on the speed-of-selection and large-library workflow pain points for professionals.
• Phototheca: Phototheca is a photo library management application offering AI-assisted organization, face recognition, and duplicate detection for large image collections. It targets the same enthusiast/prosumer desktop segment as Excire Foto.
• Skylum (Luminar): Skylum's Luminar is an AI-driven photo editing and organization platform aimed at enthusiast and professional photographers. It overlaps with Excire on AI-powered photo enhancement, selection, and workflow automation within a paid desktop product.
• ACDSee: ACDSee is a long-standing photo management and editing desktop suite for enthusiast and professional photographers. It competes directly with Excire Foto on cataloging, search, and workflow for users who want a single paid desktop application.
• Mylio: Mylio provides cross-device photo organization, AI-powered search, and curation tools for individual photographers and families. It is a direct competitor to Excire Foto in the consumer/prosumer photo-management niche, with comparable positioning around smart organization of large personal image libraries.
• Capture One: Capture One is a professional tethered-shooting, editing, and asset management suite widely used by commercial and studio photographers. It is comparable to Excire on high-end photo workflow and catalog management for professional users.
• Tonfotos: Tonfotos is a desktop photo organizer that uses AI face recognition and automatic cataloging to help users manage large personal photo libraries. It competes with Excire Foto on the consumer/family photo organization use case.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/prc-gmbh

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Pattern Recognition Company GmbH