Guide ID
Guide ID provides rental audio guide hardware (Podcatcher Pro) and a cloud content platform to museums, heritage sites, exhibitions, and brand experiences across 90+ locations in 24 countries.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2012
- HeadquartersDeventer, Netherlands
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Guide ID does
Guide ID B.V. is a Deventer, Netherlands-based private company that provides hardware and software audio guide solutions to museums, exhibitions, heritage sites, and brand experiences. Its core product is the Podcatcher Pro, a screen-free, pocket-sized audio device that automatically triggers playback via Bluetooth Low Energy and Ultra-Wideband beacons, supported by a cloud-based Tour Editor Platform for content management and visitor analytics, plus a Progressive Web App (Mobile Solution) for accessibility and an accessories ecosystem including Basecamp charging stations, Brainbox AV-sync controllers, and a family of beacons. Underlying technology combines proprietary miniaturized hardware with BLE/UWB location triggering and integrates AI-powered tools for text-to-speech, multilingual content generation (40+ languages), and predictive visitor and hardware analytics.
The company operates an enterprise rental/subscription model in which museums and cultural institutions lease devices and access the platform on multi-year contracts, with optional usage-based per-tour fees that scale with visitor volumes; replacement fees for lost or damaged hardware are published (e.g., Podcatcher Pro €119, Beacon Pro €44). Go-to-market is a consultative enterprise field-sales motion with named sales representatives covering Europe and North America, complemented by a free demo-kit program, a website-led self-serve path, and presence at industry events. The company reports 90+ client locations across 24 countries on five continents and lists marquee customers including Casa Batlló, the Anne Frank Exhibit New York, Birmingham Museums Trust, Maison Cailler (Nestlé), Stadtmuseum Berlin, and the USS Midway Museum. The company is privately held, GDPR-compliant, holds an EU Trade Mark (EUTM No. 018821059), and operates with 11-50 employees; revenue is not publicly disclosed.
Guide ID firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Guide ID
- Legal name
- Guide ID B.V.
- Website
- https://guide-id.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2012
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Guide ID provides rental audio guide hardware (Podcatcher Pro) and a cloud content platform to museums, heritage sites, exhibitions, and brand experiences across 90+ locations in 24 countries.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Guide ID industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Museum Audio Guide Systems
- NAICS
- Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services (5192), All Other Travel Arrangement and Reservation Services (561599)
- SIC
- Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370), Computer Peripheral Equipment, Nec (3577)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Guided Tours & Interpretive Services (Ranger-Led, Naturalist, Cultural Interpretation) (THAAAGAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Private Guided Tours & Personal Tour Guides (THAJALAA), Travel, Hospitality & Local Discovery Recommendations (HDAAAGAG)
Keywords
Where Guide ID is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Deventer
- HQ country
- Netherlands
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices3 records
Markets served
Guide ID business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Hardware Rental (Podcatcher Pro): Guide-ID operates primarily on a rental/leasing model for their Podcatcher Pro audio guide devices. Customers rent devices for their visitors, with fees based on usage (per tour) or fixed subscription rates. The lease model includes no depreciation, no upfront hardware investment, full support included, and automatic technology updates. Pricing is quoted based on contract terms.
- Platform/SaaS Subscription: The Tour Editor Platform is provided as part of the rental agreement, offering content management, analytics, and device management capabilities. Subscription includes access to AI-powered tools, translation services, and platform updates.
- Accessories (Beacons, Basecamp, Brainbox): Sales of accessory hardware including Beacon Lite, Beacon Pro, Beacon Waterproof, Basecamp charging stations, and Brainbox AV-sync controllers. These complement the core Podcatcher Pro rental.
- Per-Tour Usage Fees: Where agreed, fees are calculated per tour used, counting tours where visitors start at least 3 audio clips. This usage-based component provides revenue scaling with visitor volumes.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Platform Free Trial |
| Subscription | Monthly | Leasing Model |
| Usage-based | Annual | Usage-Based Pricing |
| Unit Pricing | One time/ perpetual license | Equipment Replacement Fees |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels9 records
Guide ID product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Guide-ID provides screen-free audio guide hardware (Podcatcher Pro) paired with a cloud-based content management platform (Tour Editor) for museums, exhibitions, heritage sites, and brand experiences. The system uses beacon technology for automatic location-triggered audio playback, with multilingual support across 40+ languages and visitor analytics.
Product overview
Guide ID offers a modular audio guide ecosystem built around the Podcatcher Pro as the core handheld device, paired with a cloud-based Platform (Tour Editor) for content management and visitor analytics, and a Mobile Solution (PWA) for accessibility. The Accessories line extends the system with Basecamp charging/sync stations, Brainbox AV-sync controllers, and a family of Beacon triggers (Beacon Lite, Beacon Lite Waterproof, Beacon Pro) enabling automatic, location-aware audio playback. The system is offered as a rental/lease model to museums, exhibitions, heritage sites, and brand experiences worldwide.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Podcatcher Pro: The flagship audio guide device - pocket-sized, screen-free, with automatic location-based audio triggering, 10+ hours battery life, and 8GB capacity supporting 60+ hours of audio and unlimited tours and languages.
- Guide-ID Platform
- Mobile Solution
- Accessories
Products and services
- Podcatcher Pro
- Tour Editor Platform
- Mobile Solution
- Accessories (Beacons, Basecamp, Brainbox)
Quantifiable outcome
- 30% cost reduction on audio tour offering
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Guide ID
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Guide ID technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
AI capability5 records
Feature7 records
Guide ID partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Nestlé (Maison Cailler IT Department)corePartnership with Nestlé's IT department for infrastructure modernization at Maison Cailler. Guide-ID's tour editor platform integration matched Nestlé's modernization interests. This collaboration enabled the upgrade to Podcatcher Pro with AI-powered features for one of Nestlé's premium visitor experiences.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Guide ID competitors and assessment
Company assessmentOthers
- GuruWalk: GuruWalk is a marketplace connecting travelers with free walking tours led by local guides — an adjacent, non-overlapping but thematically related platform serving the same visitor-experience economy.
- TourRadar: TourRadar is a multi-day tour operator marketplace — not a direct competitor to Guide-ID's hardware, but an adjacent ecosystem participant serving the same cultural tourism demand and a potential partner or distribution channel.
Broad incumbents
- Bloomberg Connects: Bloomberg Connects is a free app from Bloomberg Philanthropies providing audio guides, maps, and content for hundreds of museums and cultural institutions — a broad, well-funded incumbent in the cultural audio guide space competing with Guide-ID's venue customers.
- Cuseum: Cuseum (which acquired Antenna Audio's digital museum guide business) offers mobile apps, interactive guides, and beacon-triggered experiences for museums and cultural institutions — an incumbent digital alternative to Guide-ID's hardware-centric approach.
Emerging players
- VoiceMap: VoiceMap is a platform for location-triggered self-guided audio walking tours — a smartphone-based alternative to Guide-ID's dedicated device model, particularly relevant for city tours and outdoor cultural routes.
- Smartify: Smartify is a mobile app that provides object recognition, audio guides, and visitor wayfinding for museums and galleries — competing with Guide-ID on the visitor-experience layer, particularly for smaller venues without dedicated hardware budgets.
Direct peers
- Orpheo: Orpheo is one of the world's largest providers of audio guide hardware and content services for museums, cultural sites, and tourism attractions — directly competing with Guide-ID's Podcatcher Pro offering on hardware form factor, content management, and venue customer base.
- izi.TRAVEL: izi.TRAVEL operates a global app-based audio guide platform for museums, cities, and attractions, offering self-guided tours in many languages — a direct software competitor to Guide-ID's hardware-and-platform stack.
- Acoustiguide (WikiTrip): Acoustiguide is a long-established direct competitor supplying audio guide devices, apps, and content services to museums, heritage sites, and visitor attractions worldwide, targeting the same institutional customers as Guide-ID.
- Sennheiser MobileConnect: Sennheiser's MobileConnect streams assistive and audio content to visitors' own smartphones over Wi-Fi — a BYOD alternative competing with Guide-ID's dedicated-device model for the same museum and venue customers.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Guide ID social profiles
Digital presenceGuide ID compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Guide ID financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Guide ID leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Guide ID funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Guide ID M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Guide ID
What does Guide ID do?
Guide-ID provides screen-free audio guide hardware (Podcatcher Pro) paired with a cloud-based content management platform (Tour Editor) for museums, exhibitions, heritage sites, and brand experiences. The system uses beacon technology for automatic location-triggered audio playback, with multilingual support across 40+ languages and visitor analytics.
Is Guide ID a public or private company?
Guide ID is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Guide ID founded?
Guide ID was founded in 2012. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Guide ID based?
Guide ID is headquartered in Deventer, Netherlands, in the Europe region.
How does Guide ID make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Hardware Rental (Podcatcher Pro) is the primary driver. The others are platform/SaaS Subscription, accessories (Beacons, Basecamp, Brainbox) and per-Tour Usage Fees.
Who are Guide ID's main competitors?
Others on record are GuruWalk and TourRadar. Broad incumbents are Bloomberg Connects and Cuseum. Emerging players are VoiceMap and Smartify. Direct peers are Orpheo, izi.TRAVEL, Acoustiguide (WikiTrip) and Sennheiser MobileConnect.
Does Guide ID have an API?
No public API is recorded for Guide ID.
What industry is Guide ID in?
Guide ID's product category is Museum Audio Guide Systems. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAAAGAB, Guided Tours & Interpretive Services (Ranger-Led, Naturalist, Cultural Interpretation), with a secondary code of THAJALAA, Private Guided Tours & Personal Tour Guides. Its NAICS code is 5192 and its SIC code is 7370.