Every month the team at e27 runs the monthly Startup of the Month poll where we put the spotlight on the most outstanding startup of that month, giving it the extra attention that it deserves. Five startups are selected internally by taking into account idea, team, funding and founders. Three eventually make it to the final round, where we take in votes from our Telegram community.
The winner for February is none other than GTRIIP, a Silicon Valley-Singapore-based startup that eliminates the need for paperwork in hotels using biometrics driven sensors in smartphones.
From the minute a guest checks in …
When you check into a hotel, you know the constant hassle of filling out all the paperwork and providing a government-issued ID card. For too many hotels, spas, and casinos, this paperwork gets in the way of creating a smooth guest experience. But there is no way that this process can be avoided.
One must wait for the document to print, then sign it, and then wait for the staff member to scan and copy it. This tedious paperwork takes time away from leisure.
But what if there was a way to make the process quicker, easier, and leaner?
Founded in 2014, one of GTRIIP’s offerings enable guests to have a better check-in process by using their smartphone’s fingerprint and facial recognition systems.
The AI-powered system then registers and verifies the guests’ profile “instantaneously”, cutting down the time taken to less than five minutes.
Also Read: GTRIIP raises Series B funding to take its digital identity solution into new APAC markets
“During my travels, one of the pain points I encountered personally was the registration of information. For example, when I fly, there is the immigration information that I have to fill up (each time). I was once stuck in a hotel lobby for 15 minutes after a late-night flight but I couldn’t get a room as the front desk was understaffed,” said founder Maxim Thaw Tint to Business Times.
“It consists of my first name, last name, passport number and more. When I arrive at the hotel, the hotel’s front desk will give me a registration card that also requires the same kind of information. One thought that came to mind was why this process had to be so manual,” he continued.
Currently, GTRIIP has partnered with leading hotels like Park Hotel Group, Amara Singapore and Amara Sanctuary Resort Sentosa, aiming to approach one million check-ins.
GTRIIP’s partners also include Assa Abloy Global Solutions and Salto Systems Asia.
The backers
The company has raised a total of US$1.5 million in funding over three rounds, with their latest Series B funding round announced on February.
Participants in their funding round include Japanese VC firm GlobalBrain, Kepventure and Japan’s Accord Ventures and M1.
Tint also said that the company envisions a future where people can travel without any photo ID or access card. According to him face and biometrics suffice as our identity and this would be enough to make geographical mobility seamless.
The company currently has 20 employees and claims to have completed installations for 13,000 rooms and access points, enabling more than one million digital identity check-ins.
Diversification of product lines beyond hospitality for other commercial properties, such as tenant access and visitor access has also been expressed by the company.
Also Read: Startup of the Month, January: Singapore-based biotech startup TurtleTree
In addition to GTRIIP, the e27 community also voted for Credify and Forward School as the runner-up for the Startup of the Month title.
Credify provides secure and cost-effective blockchain-driven Universal Identity and Trust System solutions to companies in e-commerce and digital finance whereas Forward School integrates co-learning, and co-living spaces together for aspiring IT professionals to succeed in the fast-paced tech sector.
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Image Credit: Proxyclick Visitor Management System
The post Startup of the Month, February 2020: GTRIIP, a paperless hotel check-in platform appeared first on e27.
