As we move into 2022, the global pandemic, which is still ongoing, has brought seismic changes to the world of retail. Online retailers are busier than ever and challenged by the need to fill orders and refresh inventory at an increasingly rapid pace and reduce revenue and wastage caused by returns. Offline, in the world of malls, high streets, and bricks n mortar, the challenges are very different, as retailers face declining footfall and the need to compete with global e-tailers on convenience & price. Aidio, a Bangalore-based startup, an OEM of android displays & kiosks, delivers a one-stop solution for all interactive application requirements, powered by a customized android motherboard, smart-edge computing capabilities, capacitive touchscreen, and professional LCD panels.

Aidio was incepted in 2016 to enhance the customer experience by introducing innovative technology with interactive displays. It became one of the few OEMs producing professional-grade displays in India with a service network in most metro cities. “We started with a digital signage application in 2016, but we realized the pain points in the market of interactive displays, and that’s when Aidio was born in 2018. Our expertise is in ideating, designing, developing, and smartly integrating hardware & software. We have the experience & expertise to manufacture displays of any size with other hardware add-ons. Also, we have an innovative & flexible approach to match the client’s requirement with custom manufacturing expertise and provide after sales support”, elucidates Satish Aski, Co-Founder, Aidio.

Unique Service – Self Service to Resolve Client’s Needs
With an inhouse R&D team, Aidio has addressed new user experiences and new market opportunities. They provide the design and development of a wide range of IoT devices with edge-AI capabilities. These products are computer vision products implementing recognition and classification of objects or people, public interfaces such as a kiosk, vending, or POS within the retail and commercial settings, or hubs in industrial and medical environments, and smart security/smart access systems, voice assistants integrated with touch screens displays. Additionally, because of COVID, people expect less human interaction and a straight forward & quick checkout process.

Our mantra is to never say no to a client. And that’s what our USP is Customization

In this context, Aidio came up with its product called SelfServe. It helps retailers to provide a seamless shopping experience to the walk-in customers by providing self-checkout, scan & learn, endless aisle, virtual try-on (VTO), smart footwear mat, and more. Thus, the company’s range of products is helpful for different segments in retail like F&B, apparel, electronic appliances, footwear, eyewear, departmental stores, supermarkets, and more.

"Our mantra is to never say no to a client. And that is what our USP is- Customization. We have built products from ideation stage to mass production stage displays ranging from 5" to 32" and HW add-ons like sensors (thermal, human detection, door, and others), AI-enabled cameras for AR/VR & VTO applications, RFID & barcode readers, and many more. A steady progress in the arena and acclimatization of expertise to write changes at the OS levels has opened up vivid opportunities enabling us to deliver the Nth level of customization”, emphasizes Satish.

Aidio started manufacturing all-in-one interactive displays in 2018, and has witnessed exponential growth. Therefore, in the future, with the ‘Make in India’ initiative of the central Government, a plethora of Indian companies are bound to approach startups like Aidio for their significant and ambitious projects worth millions of dollars.

With this perspective, Aidio aims to enable organized retailers in India to offer a Self Serve, seamless shopping experience to walk-in customers. Aidio is on the way to hitting 10K+ interactive displays & 1000+ Self Serve kiosks in this financial year.

"We are betting big on SelfServe in the retail sector. The wave of SelfServe has just begun in India, and is definitely the future of retail. We will be the #1 Self-Serve solution provider with umpteen integration and reports to ease the retailer operations and impressive user experiences”, concludes Satish.