Telus International, a digital customer experience company that designs, builds and delivers next-generation services for global and disruptive brands, has acquired of Bangalore-based Playment, a provider of data annotation and computer vision tools and services specialized in 2D and 3D image, video and LiDAR (light detection and ranging) – a remote sensing method that uses laser pulses to measure variable distances.

The acquisition follows Telus International’s recent purchase of Lionbridge AI and builds upon the company’s existing deep domain expertise and experience in data annotation.

“The acquisition will meaningfully accelerate our company’s computer vision capabilities and further bolster our position at the forefront of our global peers with respect to technology innovation, strategy excellence and talent,” said Jeff Puritt, president and CEO of Telus International. “As one of the key enabling technologies for today’s advanced AI applications, computer vision is among the most revolutionary technologies of our generation with applications across every sector of the economy. The technology has become increasingly valuable to tech firms and the wider market as brands seek to uncover solutions for scenarios that typically require complex human judgement from visual and spatial patterns to solve nuanced business challenges, and build innovative, market-leading smart products and services.”

Playment was founded in 2015 and received funding from Elevation Capital (formerly SAIF Partners) and Y Combinator in the early phases of its development.

“We are thrilled to embark upon the exciting journey ahead with the Telus International team to harness the full potential of computer vision technology and to advance our joint mission of expediting the AI age through our many partnerships with brands around the world,” said Siddharth Mall, co-founder and CEO of Playment. “We look forward to growing our engagements with existing clients and having the opportunity to work with others that are currently supported by Telus International to demonstrate the art of the possible through our complementary add-on image, video and LiDAR data annotation capabilities and computer vision expertise. By amplifying our R&D efforts to further extend our product leadership in the industry, and leveraging Telus International’s global presence to accelerate our go-to-market strategy, together we will help drive disruption across all industry verticals, including in automotive, retail, Internet of Things, financial services, healthcare, and agriculture.”