German technology and stock photography company EyeEm has reportedly filed for bankruptcy and is insolvent, PetaPixel reported. The company originally set itself apart from competitors through its innovative use of artificial intelligence. But Business Insider in Germany reports that it has filed for bankruptcy, the latest in a string of issues that have plagued the company for the last several years. EyeEm attempted to restructure itself internally in 2020, which resulted in the company’s two founders leaving the business. Six months later, the remaining shareholders approved a sale to Swiss investment company New Value, which has been publicly traded as Talenthouse AG since 2021. Business Insider reports that Talenthouse paid $40 million for EyeEm, but only a few months later valued it at a single-digit million amount. Talenthouse’s stock has been slowly falling for quite some time, and over the last six months, it has lost more than 88% of its value. The bankruptcy filing might not come as a surprise to photographers who, since last year, have regularly reported issues with payments from EyeEm. Many photographers who contracted through EyeEm went unpaid for months, and last August Talenthouse blamed the situation on new accounting procedures and “global events.” Read more.
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