12/06/2024
IE School of Architecture & Design welcomed the CEO of Imageryst at the event Unlocking Earth’s Secrets: Imageryst’s AI-Powered Geospatial Insights.
Attendees from IE University were fortunate to be joined by Ángela del Carmen Fuentes, CEO and Co-Founder of Imageryst, at our latest NextGen event. Truly embodying the IE University entrepreneurial spirit, Imageryst brings together satellite imagery and data analysis to fill a gap in the market—or more specifically, a gap in the data. The no-code platform revolutionizes the accessibility of geospatial insights using machine learning and AI.
Together with co-founder José Crespo Cadórniga, Ángela helps companies make effective decisions by providing them with reliable data from satellite imagery. Imageryst is on a mission to extract accurate and reliable data so that users of any technical level can perform data processing of satellite and drone images to uncover valuable information. Their easy-to-use platform means businesses can select specific assets and attributes to extract the most useful information for their goals. And thanks to their user-friendly design, gone are the days of missing key metadata points due to insufficient technological knowledge.
Now, with their multiple imagery providers, Imageryst combines various types of metadata to provide very specific pieces of information—for example, the humidity of the land of a chosen area. This is incredibly valuable information for their clients, who can use this data to make better business decisions.
Specifically, Imageryst helps large businesses find suitable sites for construction, monitor construction as it takes place and monitor what maintenance is needed. The platform also helps businesses prioritize their work in specific areas, as they no longer need to attend sites in person to extract this data. For example, Ángela explained to attendees that with Imageryst, companies can monitor the vegetation near power lines and can keep it under control.
But Imageryst wasn’t born overnight. Imageryst was the product of years of hard work and experience in data.
Having graduated with a bachelor’s in business administration and a master’s in international business, Ángela knew she wanted to pursue a career in international business but didn’t know the steps she’d take to get there.
Throughout her career, she’s worked in startups and has seen them grow from just a few people to an entire workforce. After gaining experience in location intelligence, GIS and data-led decision-making, Ángela decided to take the leap into entrepreneurship. Together with José, she identified a gap in the market and launched Imageryst.
Now in its second year, Imageryst mainly works with large companies across a range of use cases to combine remote sensing with artificial intelligence. However, they still have big plans for the future. They started out with one-off projects to better understand their clients, but are now looking to collaborate with SMEs and further explore the mining and construction industries. Ángela sees a lot of opportunity for growth at Imageryst as the team identifies new ways to use the innovative platform and is able to pass on better information to their clients.
Bringing the event to a close, Ángela offered some sage words of advice to all attendees. She highlighted the importance of getting to know your market before you launch a business. Identifying a business opportunity is an important step in any successful entrepreneur’s journey so Ángela recommends first validating the business, identifying competitors and scaling the potential of your business idea. She also noted the challenges she faces as a female CEO in a tech environment, especially as the opportunity to launch Imageryst coincided with becoming a mother.
Finally, Ángela encouraged participants to make the most of the network around them:
“You never know when, even 5 or 10 years later, you’ll call your colleagues from your master’s program and ask them for help because you know they’re working in that area.”
At IE University, we understand the importance of a strong community in nurturing entrepreneurs—that’s why we host events like this as part of the NextGen Program. We bring together young professionals in design and real estate to foster innovation and expand professional networks.