AnyVision
Israeli facial recognition firm (renamed Oosto); Mossad ex-chief on advisory board
| AnyVision
| |
|---|---|
| Logo | .png){kind=logo} Oosto logo (the company was formerly AnyVision). Source: oosto.com. |
| Type | Private |
| Founded | 2015 |
| Founder(s) | Eylon Etshtein, Neil Robertson, Shlomo Ben-Artzi |
| Headquarters | Tel Aviv, Israel (reported January 2025) [1] |
| Services | Facial recognition and video analytics |
| Key people | Avi Golan (CEO at January 2025 acquisition); Dieter Joecker (CTO at acquisition) [1]; Tamir Pardo (advisory board, reported 2019) |
| Remarks | Other names: Oosto (from October 2021); Industry: Facial recognition / visual AI; Renamed Oosto in October 2021; acquired by Metropolis in January 2025 [2] |
AnyVision (renamed Oosto in October 2021) is an Israeli facial-recognition and visual-AI company founded in 2015 by Eylon Etshtein and Professor Neil Robertson. Globes and Ctech also name Professor Shlomo Ben-Artzi as a co-founder.[3][4] The Times of Israel reported that Tamir Pardo, a former head of Israel's Mossad, serves on its advisory board.[5][6]
West Bank surveillance controversy
In 2019 Microsoft announced an audit by former US attorney general Eric Holder after reports that AnyVision technology was used to scan faces at military checkpoints in the West Bank. AnyVision told The Times of Israel that its facial recognition "is not being used for surveillance in the West Bank or the Gaza Strip" and that technology was used at checkpoints "into and out of Israel" for security and ease of entry, similar to Global Entry in the United States.[5]
Rename to Oosto
On 27 October 2021 AnyVision announced it would change its name to Oosto, citing an expanded focus beyond security use cases and a research partnership with Carnegie Mellon University's CyLab Biometric Research Center.[6]
The name AnyVision appears in the earlier surveillance reporting; Oosto is the subsequent trading name.[6]
Microsoft audit and divestment in 2020
In a joint statement dated 27 March 2020, Microsoft and AnyVision said that the review led by Eric Holder and Covington & Burling had not substantiated the allegation that AnyVision powered a mass-surveillance programme in the occupied West Bank. The statement said that the available evidence did not establish a breach of Microsoft's facial-recognition pledge. This was the conclusion of the commissioned audit, distinct from the earlier reporting and allegations.[7]
Microsoft nonetheless agreed to divest. It said that the process had highlighted the difficulty of obtaining sufficient oversight as a minority investor in a vendor of sensitive technology, and announced an end to such minority investments in facial-recognition companies. The statement distinguished this oversight concern from the unsubstantiated mass-surveillance allegation.[7]
Acquisition by Metropolis
Oosto announced on 22 January 2025 that Metropolis, a US computer-vision and payments company, had acquired it and that its team would join the buyer. TechCrunch reported an all-share transaction valued at US$125 million. It said that chief executive Avi Golan and chief technology officer Dieter Joecker would take senior roles at Metropolis.[2][1]
| Item | Figure | Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase consideration | US$125 million | All-share valuation reported by TechCrunch, not cash paid [1] |
| Countries with deployments | 42 | Oosto's own statement on 22 January 2025 [2] |
| Name | Role | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Eylon Etshtein; Neil Robertson | Founders | [5] |
| Shlomo Ben-Artzi | Co-founder | [3][4] |
| Tamir Pardo | Advisory board, as reported in 2019 | [5] |
| Avi Golan | CEO at acquisition; moving to a senior role at Metropolis | [1] |
| Dieter Joecker | CTO at acquisition; moving to a senior role at Metropolis | [1] |
See also
- Shlomo Ben-Artzi
- Corsight AI
- Mossad
- Cyber and tech firms founded by ex Unit 8200 or occupation forces veterans
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Ingrid Lunden, Confirmed: AI vision startup Metropolis acquires Oosto (formerly known as AnyVision) for just $125M, TechCrunch, 20 January 2025, accessed 8 November 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Oosto, Oosto Supercharges Growth with Acquisition by Metropolis, Oosto, 22 January 2025, accessed 8 November 2026.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Globes, AI facial recognition co AnyVision raises $235m, Globes, 7 July 2021, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Sophie Shulman, What went wrong at AnyVision? Lessons from a $352M flameout, Ctech, 21 January 2025, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Shoshanna Solomon, As AnyVision probed, Israeli watchdog urges curbs on sales of surveillance tech, The Times of Israel, 18 November 2019.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Visual AI Company AnyVision Changes its Name to Oosto, Business Wire, 27 October 2021.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Microsoft and AnyVision, Joint statement by Microsoft & AnyVision, M12, 27 March 2020, accessed 8 November 2026.