Sarine Sign LOI To Acquire Majority Stake In Kitov.AI
Sarine Technologies Ltd , a worldwide leader in the development, marketing and sale of precision technology solutions for the evaluation, planning, processing, measurement, grading and trading of diamonds and gems, has announced the signing of a non-binding LOI Term Sheet to purchase, subject to the usual due diligence reviews and to reaching and executing a definitive agreement, a majority share in Kitov.AI against an all-cash consideration.
Kitov was established in 2014 and has developed a very sophisticated inline quality assurance and control (QA/QC) system. The system comprises an integrated robot-mounted inspection head, AI based software for defining the quality verification process directly from the inspected item’s CAD design, and other software for the 3D modelling, analysis and presentation of the imagery collected during the inspection process. Kitov has sold systems to leading customers worldwide in industries as diverse as electronics, automotive, aerospace, medical, smart energy and plastics.
Kitov.AI’s unique advantage is its application of AI to the process of defining the inspection process. Rather than manually defining the process, sometimes by physically leading the robot from point to point, the engineer simply indicates on the inspected part’s CAD file the points to be inspected and the criteria to be tested, and the system does all the rest autonomously. This cuts the implementation time significantly. Moreover, the system’s AI is designed to assist in recognizing a design flaw in the part, by collating repetitive flaws associated with the same inspected point.
Kitov.AI has just been reincorporated following a restructuring due to insolvency issues, primarily stemming from marketing and sales missteps and disagreements amongst the parties as to the ongoing funding of the enterprise. The new company retains the founders and the core R&D team with all the IP, has engaged a new U.S. Sales Manager and will be engaging a new Business Manager. The core strategy has also been redirected from selling complete tailored solutions to each customer, including robots and other incidental equipment, to selling only Kitov’s core competencies, pivoting to a software-license centered recurring revenue model.
Kitov’s open system architecture enables its customers to easily integrate the system with any leading CAD package or any robotic arm, foregoing the need for Kitov to perform lengthy integration, installation and support processes. Cooperation with other leading companies in the QA/QC field, by offering solutions based on conjoining two products’ benefits co-mounted on the same robot, is another sales channel being aggressively evaluated. It is our aim that the new entity be profitable in 2026.
In addition to being a company engaged in technologies similar to those employed by Sarine (optical inspection, AI, software, etc.), thus ‘speaking’ the same language, Kitov provides the Sarine Group with the means to diversify into new fields separate from the diamond industry.
Kitov’s founder is Dr. Joseph (Yossi) Rubner, a graduate of Israel’s prestigious Technion in Computer Science (Summa Cum Laude). He then went on to earn two PhD degrees in Computer Science and Electronic Engineering at Stanford University in California and is an internationally recognised expert in machine vision and artificial intelligence. His company RTC Vision, the parent from which Kitov.AI was spun out, executed the image processing development work on Sarine’s Galaxy systems and our Clarity grading system.
Mr. Daniel Glinert, Executive Chairman of the Group, said, “I am very excited about this opportunity. Kitov.AI has top-notch technology in an expansive field and an impressive list of customers across a multitude of disciplines. I am sure that the past experience has honed Kitov’s focus, and with our contribution to their business strategy and execution, I believe we can help Kitov evolve into a leading world-class provider of QA/QC solutions. No less important, the opportunity to diversify into other fields comes at an opportune time and at a reasonable price. I wish us all a successful productive collaboration.”
For more information: www.sarine.com
