Spatial AI company Augmodo boosts engineering team as it brings in three former Grabango employees

Augmodo, a real-time inventory and task tracker using wearable SmartBadges to create live 3D store maps, has announced three new hires - Kevin Rauwolf, Principal Engineer, Kyle Machulis, Principal Engineer and Sean Wong, Senior Engineer, all former engineers at Grabango, a now defunct provider of checkout-free technology.

The team worked together on real-time computer vision-based cashierless tech for retailers and are the latest additions to Augmodo’s other checkout-free tech senior engineering talent.

Augmodo’s wearable tech recommends actions and tasks to increase efficiencies, including restocking shelves, placing orders and improving compliance, saving stores time and money and improving retailer, associate, brand and shopper experiences.

Rauwolf will lead its computer vision infrastructure and has experience running infrastructure for neural network models as Founding Engineer and Chief Architect for the last seven years at Grabango.

Machulis will head up the store software team, with a focus on creating efficient systems to run on cameras and inside retailers. He’ll make the system scalable to a variety of store configurations, including WiFi, bandwidth and more.

He was lead firmware engineer for the last six years at Grabango and specialises in robotics, embedded systems, software and systems architecture, graphics programming, immersive environments and haptics with past experience at Mozilla and Microsoft.

Wong will lead front-end development to interface with both retailers and brands. He was senior engineer at Grabango for three years. He also spent more than five years getting his PhD and believes great product comes from efficient communication among developers, and data visualisation is a crucial part of efficient communications.

Ross Finman, CEO and Founder at Augmodo, says: “We welcome Kevin, Kyle and Sean to the engineering team and look forward to working closely with them as we strengthen and expand our spatial AI assistant to provide real-time inventory and store data to retailers and brands.”

“We have significant opportunities for growth ahead, including how our technology and store associate experience can continue to be streamlined. Our new team members are excited by Augmodo’s mission driven culture, that AI should help people, and not replace them.”

RTIH AI in Retail Awards

RTIH, organiser of the industry leading RTIH Innovation Awards, proudly brings you the first edition of the RTIH AI in Retail Awards, which is now open for entries. 

As we witness a digital transformation revolution across all channels, AI tools are reshaping the omnichannel game, from personalising customer experiences to optimising inventory, uncovering insights into consumer behaviour, and enhancing the human element of retailers' businesses.

As AI sees increasing adoption in the retail space, our newly launched awards celebrate global technology innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world and the resulting benefits for retailers, shoppers and employees.

Our 2025 winners will be those companies who not only recognise the potential of AI, but also make it usable in everyday work - resulting in more efficiency and innovation in all areas.

Winners will be announced at an evening event at The Barbican in Central London on Thursday, 3rd July. This will kick off with a drinks reception in the stunning Conservatory, followed by a three course meal, and awards ceremony in the Garden Room.

Please email our Editor, Scott Thompson, if you have any questions or need further information: scott.thompson@retailtechinnovationhub.com

FAQs

Is there a fee to enter the awards?: No, it is free of charge.

Can I enter across multiple categories: Yes.

Do I need to complete all the sections in the entry form? No, but the more information you provide, the better chance you have of producing a successful submission.

Is there a certain timeframe for nominated projects, initiatives etc? Yes, nominated projects, initiatives etc should have been completed (or substantially completed) during the last 12 months.

Who has visibility of our completed entry form and what information will be public should we win or be shortlisted? Only our Editor, Scott Thompson, and judging panel will view submissions. The information provided in the summary section of the entry form will be made public.

Do you only accept entries from UK-based companies? No, we accept entries from all parts of the world.

What is the shortlists process? Shortlists will be announced in April 2025, then shortlisted entries will be sent to our independent judging panel who will decide upon the winners and highly commended submissions. Shortlisted companies will be invited to attend an awards ceremony at The Barbican in Central London on Thursday, 3rd July 2o25.

Do winners and highly commended companies receive post-event coverage? Yes, post-event coverage includes articles on our website and also an in-depth awards review in our printed magazine. There is also the opportunity for a company profile type piece to be published on our site and within our magazine.

When is the deadline for 2025 submissions? Friday, 23rd May 2025.

When will the 2025 winners be revealed? Winners will be announced at an event at The Barbican in Central London on Thursday, 3rd July. This will kick off with a drinks reception, followed by a three course meal, awards ceremony, and after party featuring DJ until midnight.

Who will be judging submissions? Details of our 2025 judging panel will be announced in the near future.