BARY, an Israeli AI company founded in Tel Aviv, was sold to the French media and technology group Netgem, as part of another Israeli exit in the artificial intelligence sector. Netgem, which is traded on the Euronext exchange, said it is acquiring the French-Israeli startup BARY, which developed TheSubtil.ai, an AI-based system for translating, subtitling, and dubbing films and series. Under the deal, Netgem will acquire the company’s technology assets and its research and development unit in Israel.

The company, founded by Matthias Cohen-Skalli, Eli Zarbiv, and Sasha Rebo, developed the system over 18 months of research and development in Israel. Its aim is to solve one of the main problems facing the global streaming and entertainment industry, the high costs and long timelines required to translate and adapt content linguistically for international markets.

According to the company, the technology it developed reduces content localization costs by about 50% and significantly shortens turnaround times. While the cost of subtitles and linguistic adaptation has until now stood at about 18 euros per minute of content, the system can reduce the cost to about 9 euros.

"Our main advantage is the combination of an advanced AI engine with strict human oversight," said Matthias Cohen-Skalli, one of BARY's founders. "The human element is essential to preserve cultural nuances, humor, and local expressions that technology alone cannot always convey."

Since its launch, TheSubtil.ai has translated thousands of films, series, and television programs in more than 25 languages. Among other things, the system has seen strong demand in regional European languages, including Catalan.

Even before the acquisition, the company had demonstrated its capabilities through cooperation with the M6 Group, one of France's largest media and television groups, which supported the product's development and helped adapt it to market needs. The technology was also used on thousands of works shown at leading international film events, including the Cannes Film Festival and the Venice Biennale.

Following the acquisition, Eclair, part of the Netgem Group and one of the oldest companies in the film services sector, founded in 1907, will fully integrate TheSubtil.ai and make it a central component of its localization activities in France and other international markets.

At BARY, the company is already looking ahead. It is investing in the development of the next generation of accessibility solutions, led by subtitling systems for the hard of hearing and deaf (SDH), a field that in recent years has become a significant regulatory and commercial requirement for streaming giants around the world.

At the company, the deal with Netgem is seen as further proof of the Israeli high-tech industry's ability to produce technologies with global impact and attract significant international investment, even against the backdrop of the region's complex geopolitical reality.

The acquisition marks BARY's transition from the development stage to the industrial stage, with the technology developed in Israel now expected to reach some of Europe's largest studios, broadcasters, and streaming platforms.