Our pre-seed startup: BäckerAI
The baker bakes, the BäckerAI plans. We are declaring war on food waste with the help of artificial intelligence. BäckerAI calculates the optimum order quantities for each bakery branch based on more than 100 different factors. This helps bakeries to ensure high product availability with low returns.
The team
The start-up was founded by Dr Fabian Taigel, Dr Jan Meller and Franz Seubert. Jan and Fabian got to know each other during their doctoral studies in Data-Driven Operations Management at JMU Würzburg. Thanks to their many years of research in the field of machine learning and supply chain management, the two are among the leading experts in this field.
The initial idea and the first prototype of BäckerAI were developed as part of Franz's Master's thesis, which he wrote at Jan and Fabian's department. The prototype of the BäckerAI already showed the potential of the solution. The master's thesis not only led to a friendship, but also to a joint company. In recent months, the start-up has expanded to include four more employees and is already live with its solution in more than 100 shops.
The problem
Daily demand planning causes problems for many bakeries. On the one hand, insufficient order quantities lead to sell-outs, resulting in lost sales and disgruntled customers. On the other hand, overestimating customer demand leads to full waste bread containers and high markdowns. Return rates of 20% and more are currently common in the industry. In addition to the costs caused by incorrect planning, the manual ordering process takes at least 30 minutes per day and shop due to the large number of factors that need to be taken into account.
The solution
BäckerAI fully automates the ordering process, saving up to 90% in daily requirements planning. The BäckerAI also improves the ordering process. In previous projects, the team has been able to reduce returns by up to 30% while increasing the availability of goods. The BäckerAI can be easily integrated into existing POS and merchandise management systems without the need for additional hardware or software. The BäckerAI app also allows the baker to keep an eye on all figures at all times.
To determine the optimal delivery quantity, BäckerAI uses a combination of stochastic optimisation approaches from traditional supply chain management and modern machine learning algorithms as well as deep learning methods. The AI is able to recognise complex patterns and correlations in large amounts of data and then offer concrete suggestions for decisions. As a result, BäckerAI makes store ordering child's play.
Cooperation with InnoWerft
In InnoWerft, the BäckerAI team has not only found an experienced mentor, but also a competent and trustworthy partner. BäckerAI receives a great deal of support from Thomas and Inga, who are always on hand to help the team with difficult issues.
