Cosmose AI Valued at $500 Million and Adding Web3 Capabilities

Cosmose AI has received an investment that values it at $500 million.

The firm will use the new investment from the Web3 technology focused Near Foundation to combine artificial intelligence (AI) and Web3 capabilities to predict and influence how consumers shop offline, Cosmose said in a Monday (April 24) press release.

“Together, Near and Cosmose AI will build a future where more than 1 billion users can benefit from the ecosystem they are part of, remain in full control of their data and have a superior shopping experience thanks to AI-driven personalization,” Cosmose AI Founder and CEO Miron Mironiuk said in the release.

Cosmose AI connects offline and online retail by offering shoppers AI-driven recommendations that encourage them to shop at nearby brick-and-mortar stores, according to the press release.

With the new investment, the company will continue to innovate within the Web3 ecosystem and will use Near’s blockchain technology, the Near Protocol, the release said.

“We are excited to be supporting Cosmose as it continues to scale rapidly and to create new ways for retailers to offer customers the best and most seamless offline and online shopping experiences,” Near Foundation CEO Marieke Flament said in the release. “The company’s excellent AI innovation will help to intensify its global marketplace lead and with our support — give it the means to leverage the full potential of Web3 in a way that is sustainable, transparent and infinitely scalable.”

This investment is the latest in a series of announcements about Web3 technology being deployed for or by retailers.

On Thursday (March 20), Aéropostale said it has partnered with MetaversePlus to offer immersive shopping, socializing and gaming in the metaverse.

The first phase of the retailer’s metaverse plans includes an offering of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that provide access to limited-edition apparel, promotions, a drawing for 10 Tesla vehicles and a chance to be featured on one of the retailer’s digital channels.

About a week earlier, on March 9, payments firm Worldline launched a mall inside Decentraland that lets merchants, service providers and banks build a Web3 presence to gauge how their customers might respond to the metaverse.