Xerox-backed field service startup CareAR raises $10M
施乐支持的现场服务初创公司CareAR筹集1000万美元
Customer expectations and needs are on the rise, exacerbating the challenge for companies facing a higher volume of customer requests during the pandemic. The issue is acute in field service work, where employees have to work on equipment with varying technical specifications — often in confined, bandwidth-constrained, and hard-to-reach spaces. In a recent survey by The Service Council, over 90% of field workers said that more knowledge is required to service modern products while nearly 70% said that products are more complex today. Moreover, over 80% said that their current field service responsibilities require “greater technology knowledge” compared with when they first started their jobs.
客户的期望和需求不断上升，这加剧了企业在疫情期间面临大量客户请求的挑战。这一问题在现场服务领域尤为突出，员工必须在技术规格各不相同的设备上工作，而且通常是在空间狭小、带宽受限、难以到达的环境中。根据服务委员会最近的一项调查，超过 90% 的现场服务人员表示，为现代产品提供服务需要更多的知识，近 70% 的人认为当今的产品更加复杂。此外，超过 80% 的人表示，与刚入职时相比，他们当前的现场服务职责需要“更多的技术知识”。
Against this backdrop, Xerox today announced that CareAR, a platform that combines Xerox’s content management system DocuShare and multichannel marketing service XMPie with augmented reality tools for field service workers, has raised $10 million. The funding — which came from ServiceNow — values CareAR at $700 million post-money, came from ServiceNow, and ServiceNow’s John Ball says it’ll be used to expand the company’s operations and support future product development.
在此背景下，施乐公司今天宣布，CareAR 平台已筹集 1000 万美元。该平台将施乐的内容管理系统 DocuShare 和多渠道营销服务 XMPie 与面向现场服务人员的增强现实工具相结合。这笔资金来自 ServiceNow，对 CareAR 的投后估值为 7 亿美元。ServiceNow 的 John Ball 表示，这笔资金将用于扩大公司运营并支持未来的产品开发。
“Our customers have never more urgently needed workflows that deliver greater operational efficiencies, better customer and environmental outcomes, and improved safety,” Ball said in a press release. “Our investment reflects our belief that CareAR has the potential to deliver world-class, enterprise-grade augmented reality (AR). Customers using CareAR’s AR to route work through ServiceNow’s leading workflow platform can better solve problems remotely, speeding resolution times and reducing the need for expensive on-site visits … Together, we’re delivering powerful enterprise service experiences for the new world of work.”
鲍尔在一份新闻稿中表示：“我们的客户从未像现在这样迫切地需要能够提供更高运营效率、更好的客户与环境成果以及更高安全性的工作流程。我们的投资反映了我们的信念，即 CareAR 有潜力提供世界一流的企业级增强现实（AR）。客户使用 CareAR 的 AR 通过 ServiceNow 领先的工作流平台来路由工作，可以更好地远程解决问题，加快解决速度，并减少昂贵的现场上门需求……我们将共同为新的工作世界提供强大的企业服务体验。”
CareAR was founded in 2018 as an AR company focused on field service work. Xerox acquired it in January, and at the time said it planned to combine the “care experience amnagement” startup’s software with DocuShare and XMPie to form a new business unit.
CareAR 成立于 2018 年，是一家专注于现场服务工作的 AR 公司。施乐于今年 1 月将其收购，当时表示计划将该“服务体验管理”初创公司的软件与 DocuShare 和 XMPie 合并，成立一个新的业务部门。
AR-powered customer service
AR驱动的客户服务
CareAR’s platform, which has over 10,000 customers including Allstate, Nordstrom, Staples, and Verizon, lets agents see what users see for real-time troubleshooting. Technicians get AI-powered AR visual assistance and guidance tools, while IT service staff gain a portal from where they can remotely resolve incidents. Companies can use CareAR to create AR-based instructions for self-guided and animated step-by-step flows. Moreover, they can tap the platform for insights into specific assets, issues, and resolutions.
CareAR 的平台拥有超过 1 万家客户，包括 Allstate、Nordstrom、Staples 和 Verizon。该平台让服务人员能够看到用户所见的情况，以便进行实时故障排除。技术人员可以获得人工智能驱动的 AR 视觉辅助和指导工具，而 IT 服务人员则拥有一个可以远程解决事件的门户。公司可以使用 CareAR 创建基于 AR 的指令，用于自我引导的、动画化的逐步操作流程。此外，他们还可以利用该平台洞察特定的资产、问题和解决方案。
CareAR competes with TechSee, which also offers a platform that guides agents and customers through product setup and troubleshooting steps. Other rivals include Aquant and Neuron7, which leverage AI tools to automate field service across a number of different types of devices. Even tech giant Salesforce offers a competing product in Field Service Lightning, which orchestrates technician work with automated triaging and remediation tools.
在市场竞争方面，CareAR 面临的对手包括 TechSee——后者同样搭建了一个指导平台，能够帮助客服人员与终端用户逐步完成产品安装及故障排查流程。除此之外，Aquant 和 Neuron7 也构成了直接竞争关系，这两家公司借助人工智能工具，在多种不同类型的设备上实现了现场服务工作的自动化处理。就连科技行业的巨头 Salesforce 也在这场竞赛中推出了自己的竞品，名为 Field Service Lightning，该产品通过自动化的任务分类与修复工具，对技术人员的现场工作进行全面调度与管理。
But Xerox believes that CareAR, which is sold directly by Xerox and via channel partners like Accenture, Deloitte, HCL and Tata, is differentiated by its integration with ServiceNow, which provides AR guidance for customers, employees, and field workers.
但施乐认为，CareAR 的差异化优势在于它与 ServiceNow 的集成（CareAR 由施乐直接销售，并通过埃森哲、德勤、HCL 和塔塔等渠道合作伙伴销售），该集成为客户、员工和现场工作人员提供 AR 指导。
Xerox vice chairman and CEO John Visentin estimates the service experience management total addressable market to be about $80 billion.
施乐副董事长兼首席执行官 John Visentin 估计，服务体验管理的总可寻址市场约为 800 亿美元。
“Xerox has positioned CareAR to deliver capabilities that service-intensive industries need, with real-time instruction, visual tools and access to data at the tip of any user’s fingertips, all driven by predictive artificial intelligence,” Visentin said. “By creating a platform that is intuitive to a digitally native workforce, and with investment from ServiceNow, we believe CareAR will define and grow the Service Experience Management category, disrupting industries at a time when it’s needed most.”
维森廷表示：“施乐已经将 CareAR 定位为一款能够满足服务密集型行业实际需求的解决方案。它具备实时指令、可视化工具，以及让任何用户都能随时轻松调取数据的能力——而所有这些功能背后，都由预测性人工智能技术来驱动。通过打造一个让数字化原生劳动力感到直观易用的平台，再加上 ServiceNow 的资金加持，我们相信 CareAR 将不仅定义、更会推动整个服务体验管理类别的发展，在最需要变革的当下，对各个相关行业带来颠覆性影响。”
