SA auto-tech Carscan has received a $1.3 million follow-on investment

South African startup Carscan, a leading AI and AR app active in the auto-insurance space, Augmented reality app, has raised a ZAR20 million (US$1.3 million) follow-on funding round to help it further expand operations.

Carscan is an augmented reality (AR) app with embedded artificial intelligence (AI) that generates an accurate, dependable, agnostic, comprehensive, and traceable digital record of a vehicle. By eliminating fraud, governance, and industry risks, the platform enables automotive ecosystems to buy, sell, rent, service, insure, finance, and auction cars with confidence.

The digital application enables anyone to assess and extract details about a car in under a minute, reducing the insurance claim process from weeks to minutes. Carscan bills itself as a world first.

Obins Choudhary and Chander Prakash founded the startup, which raised a seed round in late 2020 led by Kalon Venture Partners, Launch Africa Ventures, and the IDF. The same three investors participated in the new round, as well as Allan Gray E2 Ventures and AlphaCode.

Carscan has gained a lot of traction with customers in South Africa, Nigeria, and India, and has recently completed successful proof of concepts in some Gulf countries. Although its technology has a variety of other applications, its initial focus is on car inspection and insurance.

“Carscan assists the consumer and simplifies and streamlines the claims process,” Prakash said. “Carscan has a number of local and international clients and was developed in collaboration with one of South Africa’s largest players in the automotive sector.”

Clive Butkow, CEO of Kalon Venture Partners, stated that the Carscan team exhibited exceptional talent and that their offering solved a large problem in the insurance and automotive industries.

“The company is growing at a rapid pace, as evidenced by their traction and market acceptance,” he said.

“This follow-on round demonstrates the company’s growth and the Carscan team’s ability to deliver a solution that solves a large problem across industries.” The solution will disrupt the automotive industry while also making life easier for numerous stakeholders in the automotive and insurance value chains.”

AlphaCode’s fund executive, Abu Cassim, expressed pride in making Carscan the first investment through AlphaCode’s newly established fund.

“Carscan is an excellent fit for our broader group, and the founding team has demonstrated exceptional skill in implementing this solution.” “We are excited to see them expand this solution across multiple markets,” he said.