CattleEye and the EIC Accelerator: Cow Cameras Bought by GEA
CattleEye, founded in Belfast in 2019 by Terry Canning and Adam Askew, uses 2D cameras and AI to spot lameness in dairy cows and score their body condition as they walk past. The system needs nothing attached to the animals. The company launched it in April 2021 and raised a $2.5 million seed round that September, led by Techstart Ventures with Seventure Partners and Turntide Technologies, according to Silicon Republic.
At the March 2022 cut-off the European Innovation Council selected CattleEye for a grant for DAIRYSCORE, continuous AI video monitoring to improve animal welfare, performance and carbon footprint. No Horizon Europe grant for it appears on CORDIS. In March 2024 the German engineering group GEA bought the company, which then monitored more than 100,000 cows, for an undisclosed price. CattleEye's accounts at Companies House show turnover of £268,434 and grant income of £574,643 in the eleven months to December 2024, and a loss of £494,385.
Company file
- Legal entity
- Cattle Eye Ltd, NI658639, Belfast
- Founded
- 2019
- Co-founders
- Terry Canning, Adam Askew
- Owner
- GEA Farm Technologies (UK) Ltd since 12 March 2024
- Staff
- 14 on average in 2024, 10 of them engineers
- EIC Accelerator
- Selected March 2022, grant only; no CORDIS project
Where CattleEye Stands Now
As a GEA subsidiary, CattleEye is integrating its system with GEA's DairyNet herd management software. In March 2026 Invest NI offered it £339,294 for an R&D project expected to create 20 jobs by January 2027, and said the system monitors over 200,000 cattle on more than 140 farms in 23 countries. The company's liquidity is managed through a GEA group cash pool, according to its accounts.
The record
From Belfast start-up to a GEA subsidiary
CattleEye was selected by the EIC in 2022. No EIC project appears on CORDIS; GEA bought the company in March 2024.
- 2019Company foundedBelfast, by Terry Canning and Adam Askew
- Apr 2021Product launchAI lameness and body condition scoring from 2D cameras
- Sep 2021Seed roundTechstart, Seventure and Turntide$2.5M
- Mar 2022EIC Accelerator cut-offDAIRYSCORE: AI video monitoring of dairy cowsgrant only
- Mar 2024Acquired by GEAOver 100,000 cows monitored; price undisclosed
- Mar 2026Invest NI support£339,294 for R&D and 20 jobs; 200,000 cattle on 140+ farms
Silicon Republic, GEA, Companies House and Invest NI.
"Investing in our AI livestock system is an important step in our ambition to grow the business and increase our market share against our competitors."
Terry Canning, co-founder, CattleEye, March 2026The Technology: Scoring Cows From Video
The software analyses how cows move and look on footage from a 2D camera and flags lameness and changes in body condition. In 2021 Silicon Republic reported that a UK university study found it outperformed expert human assessment and that Tesco and Marks & Spencer were already using the technology. The 2024 accounts say research that year covered 2D computer vision for cattle weighing.
The growth
Cows monitored
As stated by GEA at the acquisition and by Invest NI in March 2026. The 2026 figure covers more than 140 farms in 23 countries.
GEA, March 2024; Invest NI, March 2026.
What the EIC Award Promised, and What CORDIS Shows
DAIRYSCORE was presented as scalable, autonomous AI monitoring to improve animal welfare, raise performance and cut the carbon footprint of dairy farming. CORDIS lists no grant agreement, budget or report for the award. CattleEye's accounts record grant income of £863,094 in the year to January 2024 and £574,643 in the following eleven months, without naming the funders.
- EU project recordNoneNo CORDIS entry.
- Wider adoptionGrew100k to 200k cows.
- Commercial scaleSmall£268k in 11 months.
- Carbon reductionNot measuredNo published data.
The Money
CattleEye's turnover was £289,857 in the year to January 2024 and £268,434 in the eleven months to December 2024; about two-thirds of the latter came from outside the UK and Europe. It lost £494,385 in the 2024 period after a tax credit, and had net liabilities of £210,324 at year end, with GEA's group cash pool managing its liquidity.
The accounts
Grant income larger than sales
Pounds, from UK filed accounts. The 2024 period is 11 months to December after GEA changed the year-end. Grant income is not itemised by source.
Companies House, Cattle Eye Ltd (NI658639), accounts to 31 December 2024.
The customers
Where the sales came from
Turnover by destination for the 11 months to December 2024, in pounds.
Companies House, Cattle Eye Ltd accounts, note 2.
What Cannot Be Checked
Questions for the EIC
Whether CattleEye received EIC money or a UK replacement grant for DAIRYSCORE, what GEA paid for the company, and how much revenue the system earns inside GEA are not public.
Why Europe Should Care
The EIC's selection of a UK start-up in 2022 left no EU project behind it, and the company was sold to a German group two years later. The EIC's part in its story is invisible in the public record.
What the award promised
Scalable AI video monitoring to improve dairy cow welfare, performance and carbon footprint.
What the record shows
No CORDIS project, a sale to GEA, 200,000 cattle monitored and £268,000 in sales over eleven months.
The Verdict
An exit, not an EU project
CattleEye found a strategic buyer, and the cattle it monitors rose, by GEA's and Invest NI's figures, from over 100,000 in March 2024 to over 200,000 in March 2026. Its own sales stay small, and the EIC award has no public trace.
CattleEye, GEA and the EIC have not been asked for comment for this article. It is based entirely on public records and published statements, linked throughout.
Industry
AgrifoodLivestock
- Focus
- Livestock management
- Technologies
- Computer vision
- Artificial intelligence
- Keywords
- Dairy farming
- Lameness detection
- Animal welfare
- Body condition scoring