VisioLab bags $11 million Series A for AI powered self-checkout across sports venues and food service

VisioLab, a Germany headquarterd AI powered visual self-checkout for food service, has announced the close of its $11 million Series A financing round.

This was co-led by eCAPITAL Entrepreneurial Partners and Simon Capital, with participation from existing investors High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF), zwei.7 and Heartfelt (formerly APX).

The funding positions VisioLab, which was founded in 2019, for its next phase of global expansion - building on stadium wide deployments at the Orlando Magic’s Kia Center and Inter Miami CF’s Nu Stadium, and a roll-out with Live Nation Entertainment, while launching an integrated all-in-one checkout and payment platform for food service operators.

VisioLab’s iPad-based checkout system uses real-time edge AI to identify packaged and unpackaged food items at the Point of Sale, eliminating barcode scanning and reducing average transaction times. According to those involved, unlike camera array or overhead-sensor approaches, the system requires no venue infrastructure modifications and can be deployed by existing staff in ten minutes.

It is operational across corporate dining, higher education, and professional sports venues in Europe and the United States, with initial deployments in Asia-Pacific.

“The food service industry doesn’t need another point solution - it needs a new standard for how checkout works,” says Tim Niekamp, CEO and Co-Founder at VisioLab. “With this round, we’re delivering exactly that: a single system that handles everything from item recognition to payment, deployed on an iPad, with no infrastructure changes required. That’s what building a category looks like.”

“The US sports and entertainment market is the toughest proving ground in food service - peak volume, zero margin for error. We’re now live across NFL, NBA, MLS, and NHL venues and major NCAA programs with the largest food service operators in North America. That’s the market choosing a new standard,” says Iwo Gernemann, Co-Founder and President, VisioLab.

“VisioLab stands out for turning a complex operational challenge into a simple, scalable product. Their ability to drive real ROI for operators while expanding across demanding, high throughput environments like US stadiums convinced us. We believe they are building a durable platform at the intersection of AI and physical commerce,” says Lucas Merle, Partner, eCAPITAL.

“VisioLab is exactly what our 'For the next generation' thesis is about: rethinking the Point of Sale experience from the ground up with edge AI that makes operators dramatically more productive. Their traction in the US confirms what we saw early on - this technology has the potential to redefine how food service checkout works, globally,” comments Nico Heinz, Principal at SIMON CAPITAL.

2026 RTIH Innovation Awards

AI will be a key focus area at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards.

The awards are now open for entries and celebrate global retail technology innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Our winners will be revealed at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards Ceremony, taking place at The HAC in Central London on Wednesday, 4th November.

Check out our 2025 winners here.

Our 2025 hall of fame entrants were revealed during a sold out event which took place at The HAC on 16th October and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by award winning comedian, actress and writer Tiff Stevenson.

In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “This is the awards’ fifth year as a physical event. We started off with just 30 people at the South Place Hotel not far from here, then moved to London Bridge Hotel, then The Barbican, and last year RIBA’s HQ in the West End.”

“But I’m conscious of the fact that, to quote the legend that is Taylor Swift, You’re only as hot as your last hit, baby. So, this year we’ve moved to our biggest venue yet, and also pulled in our largest number of entries to date and broken attendance records.”

He added: “This year’s submissions have without doubt been our best yet. To quote one of the judges: The examples of innovative developments across both traditional and digital retail spaces were truly remarkable.”

Congratulations to our winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Tiff Stevenson, and all those who attended our 2025 gathering.