A container terminal in Slovenia digitized its gate operations last August. The work was done on a Saturday afternoon [WorldCargo News, August 2025]. The system, from Seattle-based GateIn AI, uses existing CCTV cameras to read container codes and truck plates. It is a starkly different proposition from the large, fixed optical character recognition portals that dominate major ports. For a terminal like DepoLink d.o.o., the math is simple: avoid a six-figure hardware investment and start tracking containers in real time.
GateIn AI's wedge is cost and speed of deployment. The company's software, a transformer-based AI model, runs on off-the-shelf cameras and edge compute devices [WorldCargo News, August 2025]. This modular approach is pitched as an inexpensive pathway to digitalization for small and mid-size container terminals [Prospeo]. The value proposition is measured in minutes and dollars per box: the company claims its system unlocks operational value in under two minutes per container and saves over $1.80 per container tracked [GateIn AI]. For an industry where manual data entry errors are routine, the automation pitch is straightforward.
The team behind the camera
The founding team brings logistics tech and product experience to the problem. CEO Bernardo Mendez-Arista is a longtime product leader with stints at Amazon and robotics firm Volley Automation [GeekWire, 2025]. CTO Michael Pivtoraiko also worked at Volley and previously started two logistics tech companies [GeekWire, 2025]. Co-founder Jordi Goni is listed as the operations and strategy advisor [Prospeo]. Their collective background suggests a focus on practical deployment over pure research.
| Role | Name | Key Background |
|---|---|---|
| CEO | Bernardo Mendez-Arista | Product leadership at Amazon, Volley Automation |
| CTO | Michael Pivtoraiko | Multi-agent AI at Volley; prior logistics tech founder |
| Co-founder & Ops Advisor | Jordi Goni | Operations and strategy |
Where the wheels could come off
The early proof points are promising but limited. The DepoLink deployment is a single reference customer, albeit one that validates the core technical and commercial premise. The company's self-reported metrics of 99% accuracy and specific cost savings lack third-party verification [GateIn AI]. Furthermore, the competitive landscape includes established players like Visy, which offers gate automation systems. GateIn's bet is that its software-only, camera-agnostic model can undercut the capex of traditional solutions and win the long tail of smaller terminals.
The risks are not trivial. Scaling a vision model across diverse terminal layouts, lighting conditions, and camera qualities is an engineering challenge. Sales cycles in physical logistics are long, and displacing entrenched processes requires more than a technical demo. The company's current capital base, a $200,000 pre-seed raise documented via an SEC Form D filing, provides a short runway to prove the model at scale [Marketcast].
The next twelve months
The immediate roadmap is clear: convert the DepoLink case study into more paying customers. The company must demonstrate that its Saturday-afternoon install is repeatable and that the promised operational gains materialize consistently. Key signals to watch will be new terminal announcements, especially in North America, and any movement on a seed round to fund expansion.
For now, the bet is quantified. GateIn AI is operating with $200,000 in disclosed capital and a team of three founders to prove that AI vision can be the wedge into a multi-billion dollar logistics digitization market. The question for 2025 is whether other terminals will see the same value DepoLink did, and who will write the check to help them find out.
Sources
- [GateIn AI] Company website | https://www.gatein.ai
- [GeekWire, 2025] Startup Radar: Seattle companies tackle ports, protein design, golf scorecards, and e-commerce returns | https://www.geekwire.com/2025/startup-radar-seattle-companies-tackle-ports-protein-design-golf-scorecards-and-e-commerce-returns/
- [Marketcast] SEC Form D filing summary | https://marketcast.com
- [Prospeo] gatein.ai Overview, Address & Contact | https://prospeo.io/c/gatein-ai
- [WorldCargo News, August 2025] DepoLink first in Europe with Gatein OCR | https://www.worldcargonews.com/ict-automation/2025/08/depolink-first-in-europe-with-gatein-ocr/