The general hype around all things AI is not lifting all boats, as certain startups continue to struggle and look for exits.

In one of the latest developments, TechCrunch has learned and confirmed that Metropolis, an AI-powered parking platform, has acquired Oosto, the controversial computer vision company that used to be known as AnyVision. TechCrunch understands the all-stock deal is valued at $125 million — just one-third of the $380 million that the startup had raised from investors over the years, and likely a fraction of its peak valuation.

Metropolis’s tech is used in 4,000 locations and the company says it processes some $5 billion in payments annually. And $5 billion is an important number. We understand that Metropolis is now in the process of fundraising at a valuation that is approaching $5 billion. Oosto investors — which include SoftBank, FifthWall, Lightspeed, DFJ, Eldridge Industries and others — receive Series D preferred stock in as part of the Oosto transaction. The acquisition includes Oosto’s IP and team, and CEO Avi Golan and CTO Dieter Joecker will take senior roles at Metropolis.

A spokesperson confirmed the details over the phone and in a statement: “Metropolis, an artificial intelligence company whose computer vision platform enables checkout-free payment experiences for the real world, has agreed to acquire Oosto, the leading AI safety and security company.” Metropolis will be folding in some of Oosto’s technology to enhance its current business, she added.

Last week, Globes broke the news that Oosto was up for sale.

The sale caps off a turbulent several years for Oosto.

As AnyVision, the company was one of a wave of computer vision startups building technology being used in controversial surveillance applications. Over the years, there were reports exposing which organizations were quietly using its technology, and how the Israeli government tapped it to spy on Palestinians; other reports shed light on just how much data the company was able to collect.

The bad publicity led to the company losing Microsoft as a key strategic investor, although other investors were ready to double down. In 2020, it appointed a new CEO, Avi Golan, who had worked at SoftBank, and then in 2021, AnyVision, pitching itself as an ethical AI company, raised a whopping $235 million in a round led by SoftBank and Eldridge. Other backers of the company have included Lightspeed and Qualcomm, per PitchBook data.

Just months after the big SoftBank raise, AnyVision rebranded to Oosto and looked to pivot to more enterprise applications as it inked a research partnership with Carnegie Mellon. But it seems that the difficulties continued, with rounds of layoffs and Oosto parting ways with the university.

We understand from sources close to the company that Oosto was making around $20 million in annual revenues.

It’s worth wondering whether some of Oosto’s problems might have been a matter of timing. The last couple of years have seen big geopolitical shifts, AI has entered the mainstream of public consciousness, and a new wave of AI companies like Anduril and Helsing seem to be breaking many taboos on building military, defense and (more euphemistically) “resilience” technology.

Would AnyVision (or Oosto) have appeared as controversial today as it did five years ago? Regardless, the rise and fall of Oosto can be seen as a memento mori for the newer wave of AI companies being funded today on very high hopes, but perhaps not very high revenues (let alone profits).

That brings us to Metropolis. It, too, is focused on computer vision, but “focus” is perhaps the operative word here: Its square aim is to build AI-based systems for parking environments, automatically tracking cars when they enter or leave a space, and charging accordingly. In 2023, Metropolis raised $1.7 billion in financing and other investment, most of which was used to buy another parking technology specialist called SP Plus for $1.5 billion.

From what we understand the basic plan now will be to use Oosto tech to enhance Metropolis’s capabilities around computer vision in parking environments, rather than to expand to covering a number of other use-cases. Over time, it could include more applications where customers regular drive or walk in and out of a business environment (for example drive-throughs).

“Tech-wise this acquisition makes the perfect sense,” Avihai Michaeli, an investment banking advisor based in Tel Aviv, told TechCrunch. “Both Metropolis and Oosto (formerly known as AnyVision Tech) are key players in the AI-driven computer vision and security solutions space, with applications that enhance urban management, public safety, and automation. Both companies focus on leveraging cutting-edge technology to create safer, smarter, and more efficient environments through artificial intelligence and data analytics.”

He added that the current war in Israel has made it challenging for some Israeli companies looking to raise money or do other business, which could have also played a role here.