Quickie: Bentley acquires Imago for image management

That’s a simplified headline — what Imago really does is enable users to catalog and review drilling core and chip (in other words, rock sample) images. A key point in the acquisition: Imago’s machine learning technology that “will lead to a step function in the interpretation of geological data”.

Imago will become part of Bentley’s Seequent business unit, expanding its “technology solutions portfolio while boosting cloud capabilities to help geoscientists and engineers solve earth, environment, and energy challenges”.

Why does this matter? Because it continues Bentley’s quest to help its clients manage the vast volumes of data they collect — historically, never to use again. I remember at one Bentley event, I got to chatting with someone from a water utility. Nothing big or fancy. He was very excited by Bentley’s soil test result management tools, which he believed would help his municipality manage development, match water use to acquisition and treatment, and optimize what may soon become a scarce resource. I had no idea how complex this is, and how important it is to do it right.

I would imagine geology is much the same: too much data, badly organized, and just filed away. Sounds like Imago can help with that.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.