Canada-based retail technology and marketing company VSBLTY Groupe Technologies Corp. (VSBY:CSE; VSBGF:OTC; 5VS:FSE) is generally known for the variety of smart applications it offers to drive brand engagement and put marketing insights in motion.
At its core, the company, which is headquartered in Philadelphia, is engaged in Proactive Digital Display, which transforms retail and public spaces as well as place-based media networks using software-as-a-service (SaaS)-based audience measurement and machine learning.
This work allows retailers and brand builders to identify customer habits, and even individual customers, thereby providing uniquely tailored multimedia experiences from end-to-end along the buying journey in brick-and-mortar locations with greater fidelity than one would experience online.
By utilizing facial recognition, age, and gender, VSBLTY's proprietary technology can effectively enhance retail brand engagement and measurement through customized ads on in-store digital displays at the point of purchase in real-time. This technology has proven to increase brand sales by over 25%.
VSBLTY's main products include DataCaptor, VisionCaptor, VSBLTY Vector and VSBLTY Metrics. DataCaptor leverages camera and sensor technology through AI tools, enabling real-time analytics and anonymous audience data. VisionCaptor Content Management System provides a variety of capabilities for bringing proximity-aware, interactive brand messaging to life on any digital screen.
These two key technologies are deployed together to create custom brand experiences for users that follow them throughout connected retail experiences.
However, fewer people are aware of VSBLTY Vector, the company's security-focused software, which provides facial recognition and weapon detection.
The Catalyst: Access Control Rollout for Major Mexican Customer
On April 8, VSBLTY announced that a major Mexican customer had successfully deployed the firm's VSBLTY Vector solution across a network of 40 CCTV cameras to automate access control at the customer's two-story headquarters facility, replacing security cards and allowing the free flow of employees while rapidly detecting and alerting security forces of any unauthorized or potentially bad actors.
As the announcement explains, "Previously, traditional access control systems have been key cards, key fobs, or digital passwords, but each has its own security limitations."
"Employees now enter their workplace without physical checkpoints while CCTV cameras and AI-backed software verify their status. If the system identifies an unauthorized person, building security is notified immediately."
"To ensure a safe workplace, this program provides a continuous search for unknown persons based upon an enrollment database of employees and other authorized personnel. Each day, approved visitors to the building are automatically logged and entered into the firm's system."
"The software is also not only capable of identifying a stranger (whose image is not in the records) attempting to enter an authorized area but can identify a terminated or previously problematic employee whose image is in the system. This advanced program can also offer additional security, including weapons detection and suspicious behavior to trigger alerts."
Why This Sector? Expanding the Value of AI
Using AI to recognize, quantify and collate unknown users, such as the random collection of shoppers who visit a brick-and-mortar retailer in a given day, is already a valuable market segment.
According to Insider Intlegence's Retail Media Ad Spending Forecast H1 2023, "We expect advertisers to pour more than US$45 billion into retail media ad spending in 2023." The report projects that spending to expand to some US$ 106 billion by 2027.
With automated advertising solutions designed to target specific demographics in active retail spaces, VSBLTY is positioning itself to capture a significant share of that rapidly expanding market. However, by repurposing its core AI tech for security work, it is also gaining access to a huge secondary market no other retail advertising networks are addressing.
According to a report from Future Market Insights, "The global building access control security market is expected to secure a market value worth US$ 11.89 billion in 2023. During the forecast period from 2023 to 2033, the market is likely to display a CAGR of 14% while garnering a value worth US$ 44.2 billion. The increasing demand for smart buildings and infrastructure will be driving the demand for the building access control security market in the future."
The report goes on to specify that zero-touch access control solutions, such as those offered by VSBLTY, are in particular demand in a post-pandemic market. By deploying its core technology across these disparate fields, VSBLTY has positioned itself to grow in a multi-faceted manner as these markets for novel AI technology mature.
Why This Company? Multiple Markets for AI Automation
As the company is situated at this valuable intersection between retail advertising and access control, it's easy enough to market as making customers' existing video cameras "smarter" by providing real-time monitoring and alerting. This ability to install using legacy technology is a powerful selling point for clients who have existing and expensive relationships with traditional security hardware vendors.
"Employees forgetting passwords, losing keycards and fobs can be both an administrative nightmare and a financial burden for corporations," explains VSBLTY Co-founder & CEO Jay Hutton. "This deployment of our AI-based Vector product for access control and building security alleviates many issues inherent in traditional access control systems."
"We anticipate the success of our advanced security system in Mexico will lead to many other installations worldwide," he concludes.
Why Now? ‘Almost Unlimited Upside'
On August 1, Technical analyst Clive Maund published a detailed analysis of VSBLTY quite optimistically titled "This Tech Co. Has Almost Unlimited Upside."
In it, he explained that "Whilst it is generally unwise to go against the prevailing trend when it is still in force, there are exceptions when the volume pattern strongly indicates that reversal is imminent, which is the case with VSBLTY, and the case for buying Visibility is stronger still because the price of the stock is so close to zero that there is almost no downside — as with an option you can only lose your stake, whereas the upside is relatively unlimited."
"On the 26-month chart, we can see the horrendous bear market in Visibility that has taken it from a peak at almost CA$2.00 in November 2021 to bottom at a miserly 5 cents a couple of weeks ago. The reason that we are interested in it here, apart from the fact that it can't drop much more because it is almost worthless, is the appearance of persistent strong upside volume last month and especially this month that has driven the Accumulation line steeply higher," Maund explained.
"This is viewed as evidence of determined Accumulation by a person or persons or an entity who consider(s) the company to be grossly undervalued here and might be the prelude to a takeover."
"VSBLTY is obviously a speculative play here that is only suited to more experienced investors and traders who understand the risk inherent in this setup. Could the flurry of buying interest last month and this be simply a ‘flash in the pan' that leads to nothing and the downtrend continue? Well, it could, but that is considered unlikely."
"Instead, we recognize that you could lose your stake buying here if it continues even lower and maybe the company goes bust, but at the same time, if it does recover, you could make many times your investment, and since the technicals indicate that the chance of this happening is better than 50:50 it is considered to be a worthwhile calculated risk."
Ownership and Share Structure
As of June 28, 2022, VSBLTY had a market cap of CA$82 million, with 209,753,999 basic shares outstanding, 47,256,115 warrants, and 14,440,834 options, for a fully diluted base of 271,450,948.
Management, board & insiders owned roughly 21%.
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