Israeli AI firm Windward to list on London AIM with £126m market cap

Maritime technology firm Windward has announced today its intention to IPO on AIM on 6 December with a market cap of £126.5m.

The Israel-based company has raised £34.5m from institutional investors, including Hargreave Hale, Gresham House, Premier Miton and NinetyOne. The funds will be used to expand its data sources, develop its technology and invest in sales and marketing.

Chaired by Lord Browne, ex chief executive of BP, other investors include Marc Benioff, the Salesforce chief exec, Aleph, Israel’s leading VC, and the two founders, who each own seven per cent.

Windward’s maritime intelligence platform is used by customers such as BP, Shell and HSBC to ensure compliance with shipping regulations and sanctions when chartering ships.

The artificial intelligence platform contains live analysis on every large seafaring vessel – who owns it, where it has been, where it currently is and whether it has previously broken any sanctions or regulations.

Customers also include government organisations such as agencies from the US department of Defence and Homeland Security, Frontex (the pan-European board and coast guard agency) and the United Nations.

Windward has 120 employees and had an annual contract value of $19.7m (£14.8m) at 30 September 2021, with 99 per cent of the revenue being subscription based.

The company has presence in the UK, USA, Denmark, and the UAE.

Ami Daniel, chief exec and co-founder of Windward, commented: “The maritime trade industry is vast and complex with multiple stakeholders and data visibility is low. Our Predictive Intelligence Platform shines a light on the industry. Increasing regulations around sanctions compliance and carbon emissions provide strong tailwinds for our offering.”

“Our proposed admission to AIM marks an important milestone in our journey and I would like to thank all of our existing and new investors for supporting our vision, and importantly, all of the team at Windward who have made this possible.”