Kodak Alaris doubles down on IDP strategy

July 26, 2024
Article, Artificial Intelligence, Artificial Intelligence

Kodak Alaris, a company with a strong heritage in information capture and processing, continues to invest in its intelligent document processing (IDP) strategy. In the past year, it has set up a dedicated business solutions organisation to accelerate growth across its IDP offerings. Its expertise with document scanning, advanced data capture and process automation, data extraction and validation, and artificial intelligence (AI) is the foundation for its strategy to help customers transform their document processes – across both physical and digital documents.

In a crowded and fragmented IDP market and an AI technology landscape that is evolving rapidly, Kodak Alaris is taking an Open Intelligence approach by leveraging third-party AI services (AWS, Google, and Microsoft) for agility and faster time to market.

Quocirca opinion

First established in 2013, Kodak Alaris is a leading provider of intelligent document capture and information management solutions. Its move into the IDP market in 2019 builds on a strong heritage in the document scanner market, reporting that 2.4 trillion pages have been scanned by scanners from Kodak Alaris since 1990.

Kodak Alaris is making strong advances in the IDP market, providing end-to-end IDP capability with integration across hardware, software, and professional services. Kodak Alaris has a global presence with over 12,500 IDP customers today and an IDP footprint that spans a range of industry sectors including financial services, education, government, healthcare, and professional services. Financial services and healthcare are its largest IDP markets, illustrating its ability to handle complex environments and high-volume workloads.

The company is uniquely positioned in the market as one of the few vendors that offers a complete portfolio across scanning hardware and IDP solutions. As such, Kodak Alaris leverages its expertise in high-volume back-office capture and distribution across thousands of locations.

A key point of differentiation is the company’s Open Intelligence approach within their IDP platform, KODAK Info Input Solution. This software leverages industry-leading AI document intelligence services including machine learning, large language models (LLMs), and generative AI from AWS, Google AI, and Microsoft Azure. These offer advanced classification and extraction capabilities, and by using trusted AI models, customers do not need to build proprietary integrations; they can simply select the AI engine that is most suitable for their needs. Such embedded cloud AI services enable customers to scale deployments faster and future-proof their AI investments. The platform can be deployed into private clouds or on-premises.

Kodak Alaris has made notable progress in providing pragmatic, task-specific IDP solutions such as accounts payable that address vital aspects of core business operations. These solutions also create an avenue for revenue-generating professional services for the company and its partners. Kodak Alaris should consider generating further accessible, ready-to-deploy use cases and industry-specific applications. These should be developed quickly to extend Info Input Solution’s ‘intelligent’ functionality and improve ongoing document processing.

Kodak Alaris is well-positioned to help businesses develop a unified IDP plan that addresses both paper and digital documents. The company particularly stands out in the IDP market by combining its capture and information management strengths with its unique Open Intelligence approach. This strategy allows it to adapt to the fast-changing world of AI-powered IDP.

KODAK Info Input Solution Overview

KODAK Info Input Solution provides the core IDP capabilities of document input (from scanned and digital sources), classification (using AI and ML for document categorisation), extraction (content recognition and interpretation), validation and augmentation (with enterprise system data), and integration and delivery (to business applications). The browser-based solution can be deployed on-premises or into private clouds, supports decentralised capture, and harmonises data sourced from digital and physical documents. Kodak Alaris supports a range of IDP use cases such as accounts payable, invoice processing, claims processing, onboarding, BPO, and centralised IDP, with scope for much more.

Its latest release, Info Input 7, introduced new features such as expanded document AI services for unstructured documents, simplified no-code and low-code workflow automation tasks, and industry-leading human-in-the-loop volume capabilities. Other developments include embedding IDP in everyday applications such as Salesforce, a new interactive script editor, and the ability to ingest, process, and deliver real-time feedback on documents with INfuse Smart Connected Scanning Solution from Kodak Alaris.

Key differentiators

Open Intelligence

Document AI services from AWS (particularly AWS Textract, the machine-learning service providing OCR, text, handwriting, layout, and data extraction from scanned documents), Google AI, and Microsoft Azure lie at the heart of Info Input Solution and underpin the Open Intelligence approach. Embedded document intelligence applies AI to documents directly via out-of-the-box APIs.

Physical and digital document processing

Integration with scanners from Kodak Alaris (or any TWAIN or ISIS scanner) enables image data from physical documents to be directly input into the AI-enabled IDP Info Input Solution, bridging physical and digital environments. Businesses can even include AI at the point of capture with the INfuse Smart Connected Scanning Solution, which connects directly to Info Input Solution for AI-enhanced real-time verification, validation, and feedback–all in a single automated user-friendly workflow. These capabilities enable AI-enhanced automatic document classification, extraction, and indexing to be applied early in the document workflow process for scanned images to reduce exceptions requiring manual intervention.

Flexibility and scalability

Flexibility via integration is another strength of the IDP solution from Kodak Alaris. Kodak Alaris reports that one IDP server can support thousands of users and process billions of pages at scanning rates of more than 200 pages per minute. Alongside AI services & robotic process automation (RPA) integrations, capabilities such as embedding one-button scanning and IDP into line-of-business applications indicate its aim of making access to IDP simple and seamless.

Intuitive user interface

Ease of use is high on the Kodak Alaris priority list, delivered through an intuitive, customisable user interface. Capabilities such as no/low-code scripting, data-entry screens that mirror an organisation’s documents for simplified real-time validation, and direct integration with many business applications all contribute to minimal end-user training requirements and rapid time to value. Reducing the need to switch between applications increases productivity and lowers costs.

Simplified deployment

Kodak Alaris has taken steps to simplify installation, even for large implementations. As a browser-based system, it only requires a server component. Users can access it via a web browser or mobile app without needing client-side installation. Info Input Solution also supports centralised management, enabling remote management, testing, and updates by administrators. Reporting and batch management dashboards add to control and oversight capabilities.

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Further Quocirca Reading

• The Future of Document Capture. Published January 2024. This study analyses trends in document capture and scanning, the use of MFPs for scanning, the extension of MPS to encompass print and capture and the application of AI to capture technologies.
• AI Opportunities in the Print Industry. Published March 2024. This report discusses where businesses believe AI will be valuable to the print and capture environment and makes recommendations on how vendors can apply AI to their offerings,
• IDP: A Market Primer. Published April 2024. This report highlights the role and positioning of IDP in the wider tmarket landscape, and how print industry suppliers can utilise IDP to expand portfolios and spheres of influence.