GE acquires machine learning startup Wise.io

GE today announced that its GE Digital division has acquired machine learning startup Wise.io. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.

Among other things, GE wants to have Wise’s team improve its Digital Twin services that are geared toward the industrial Internet of Things (IoT), according to a statement. More generally, the team “will spearhead innovative solutions in GE’s vertical markets to develop its machine learning offerings,” the statement says.

That’s different from the startup’s primary focus, which was improving customer support with machine learning. Earlier this year, for example, it introduced automated support replies for Salesforce and Zendesk. This focus on customer service helped Wise.io distinguish itself from general-purpose machine learning startups such as H2O.ai.

Wise.io was founded in 2012 and headquartered in Berkeley, California. Customers include Gusto, Pinterest, Republic Wireless, TaskRabbit, and Twilio. Investors include Voyager Capital. The startup went through the Alchemist Accelerator and Citrix Startup Accelerator.

Yesterday, GE said it was buying field service management company ServiceMax for $915 million.