PhotoAid

Photo-booth network Brothers Marcin (b. 1984), Rafał (b. 1982), and Tomasz (b. 1986) Młodzki, In 2012, they founded FunFotos, to manufacture photo booths and manage a network of the devices. First FunFotos booths that Młodzkis built in the family garage, had proprietary software and were used only for taking souvenir photos. In 2015, when the Młodzkis had around 70 photo booths in shopping malls, amusement parks, and cinema multiplexes across Poland, a venture capital fund Inovo Venture Partners invested PLN 1.3 million in the company. In 2016, FunFotos started to build a network of photo booths that enabled taking biometric photos adapted to identity documents: biometric passports, driver's licenses, registration cards, travel visas, as well as the Karta Polaka (''The Pole's Card''), and other residence permits. The company placed its photo booths in local government offices and passport offices. In 2018, FunFotos had 130 photo booths for taking biometric passport photos. In 2019, the network had 180 devices across Poland, and a printing point in Boston. The company had PLN 4 million (US$1 million) in revenues. In late 2019, a demo version of the Android app was released. In February 2020, the Młodzkis bought back Inovo's shares of the company. In 2020, FunFotos employed 18 people. With a proprietary photo application for creating photos for ID cards, the company has transformed from an analog to digital business operating online around the world. The software was co-financed by the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development. In 2021, the company rebranded to PhotoAid, and registered its trademark at the European Union Intellectual Property Office. The app was used in 90 countries. == Software ==

In a selfie uploaded to the PhotoAid mobile app, the artificial-intelligence algorithms detect a face, crop the image, and turn the background into a solid white, transforming the file into a passport photo – adjusting the size and lighting, in accordance with regulatory requirements in over 13 countries. Immediately after uploading the photo, the AI is able to verify and mark it correct or incorrect. The app converts a photo in three seconds. Images processed and scaled to passport and visa photos go through a double-match test: by the software itself, and by an expert. In 2022, the app was used by over 11.5 million users, for over 10,000 types of documents in over 150 countries. In 2024, 70,000 people used the app each month in 150 countries, mainly Poland, United States, France, United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, and Italy. == Social involvement ==

In June 2021, under the honorary patronage of the Ministry of Development, Labor and Technology, PhotoAid carried out a campaign “Kreuj obraz zawodowy” (Create Your Professional Image), enabling free use of the professional photo creator for CVs on its platforms. Throughout 2021, PhotoAid carried out social campaigns towards commune offices, seniors, and primary school students, taking ID photos as part of the state digital-document app mObywatel. In October 2022, in cooperation with provincial governments, the company took 120,000 biometric photos for refugees from Ukraine, as part of the campaign PESEL for Ukraine. == Awards and accolades ==

PhotoAid was included in the Financial Times' and Statista's "FT 1000" ranking, among the fastest-growing companies in Europe for 2023, The company's founders received the EY Entrepreneur of the Year Award, in the New Technologies/Innovation, for in the category New Technologies/ Innovations. In late 2024, PhotoAid has won the main prize at the Polish startup ecosystem awards Aulery. == References ==