WINNER Vurb | Disrupt NY 2014 Startup Battlefield

TL;DR

Vurb is a search platform that weaves together services like IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, Crunchbase, and Yelp into interactive cards, letting you plan a night out or research startups without opening new tabs or apps. It syncs activity across web and mobile, and lets teams save and share cards in collections.

Transcript

Do you remember how you first experienced the internet? Hello, I'm Bobby. It's amazing how the internet has evolved. And I founded Verb to continue this evolution by reinventing surfing the web. That's right, surfing the web. It's a throwback to the early 90s when Surfy embodied this new and magical experience of flowing blue link to blue link. But... Read More

Key Insights

• Vurb is a search platform founded by Bobby to reinvent surfing the web by weaving together the separate services people use into a single connected experience across web and mobile.
• The core problem Vurb addresses is web fragmentation: content scattered across millions of websites and single-purpose mobile apps forces users to jump site to site, assembling information from stacks of browser tabs.
• Vurb generates interactive cards from services like IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes when you search a movie, providing direct links to sources and letting you compare multiple movies without leaving the page or opening tabs.
• Vurb organizes user activity into a persistent stream that stays with you, so choosing a movie can flow directly into finding nearby theaters using your location, then restaurants near the theater, sharing context across services.
• Activity streams can be saved into collections that are shared publicly or privately with a team, and the platform can assist with making reservations and purchasing tickets once team members confirm.
• Vurb uses semantic search to determine the best source for a query, so searching a person routes to Crunchbase, then lets you cross-reference profiles across AngelList, LinkedIn, and Twitter for connections and investments.
• On mobile, Vurb syncs activity and data across devices, deep-links into apps like Yelp, Foursquare, OpenTable, and Google Maps, and sends push notifications to team members when a card is saved to a shared collection.
• A key challenge is that much valuable data is locked inside app silos with closed APIs, so Vurb starts with services that have open APIs and pursues individual content partnerships to expand its verticals over time.

Questions & Answers

Q: What is Vurb and what problem does it solve?

Vurb is a search and browsing platform founded by Bobby to reinvent surfing the internet on web or mobile by weaving together the services people use. It solves web fragmentation: the rapid growth of the web scattered content across millions of websites and single-purpose mobile apps, forcing users to jump site to site, assembling bits and pieces of information from stacks of browser tabs. Vurb acts as an intelligent layer over the internet that helps you get things done in one place.

Q: How does Vurb work when planning a night out?

You start with a search for movies, and when you select one, Vurb generates a card from services like IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes with direct links to those sources. You can pull in additional movies to compare without leaving the page or opening tabs. After choosing a movie, Vurb uses your location to find nearby theaters, then restaurants near the theater. Each result appears as an interactive card with reviews, reservations, and related actions, and the whole activity can be saved into a collection.

Q: What are Vurb cards and how are they created?

Cards are the interactive units Vurb generates from services, transforming components of the web into a unified format. Each service outputs interactive cards, and Vurb makes them compatible so they can be mixed and matched. Creating them relies on templates: Vurb studies what data each service provides, then maps the information into simplified, streamlined layouts people understand, similar to the cards search engines show. This reduces cognitive overhead and interaction redundancy across the many different layouts that apps and websites use.

Q: How does Vurb use search to connect services?

Vurb uses semantic search to determine the best source for a given query. In the demo, searching for a person routed to Crunchbase as the best source, from which you could dive into Sequoia Capital, view recent investments like Whisper, see co-investors like Joe Greenstein, then cross-reference that profile on AngelList, LinkedIn for mutual connections, and Twitter for tweets. These surfing possibilities increase exponentially as more services are added to the platform, building bridges across an interconnected graph of services.

Q: What can Vurb do on mobile?

Everything shown on the web is also available on mobile. With one swipe you view all previous searches because Vurb syncs your activity and data across devices. Searching a place returns a card with the information you need, and Vurb deep-links into other apps like Yelp, Foursquare, OpenTable, and Google Maps. Saving a card into a shared collection instantly sends teammates a push notification. You can write notes and comments on a card and share outside your team via text or Facebook in seconds.

Q: How do collections and sharing work in Vurb?

Vurb lets you save an entire activity stream into a collection that you can share publicly or privately with just your team. Once team members confirm, Vurb can help with making reservations and purchasing tickets. On mobile, saving a card to a shared collection instantly triggers a push notification to teammates. The collection shows all the cards a team has shared, such as places, startups, people, and videos, and members can add notes and comments directly on cards.

Q: What technology powers Vurb's platform?

Vurb is described as an intelligent layer over the internet that helps you get things done in one place. Building the contextual bridges across services is hard, so Vurb uses data technologies like semantic search and recommendations. But data alone is not enough, so the team also designs new user interfaces and interaction paradigms from the ground up. This lets them weave services together and explore opportunities around an interconnected graph of services, collections, and people.

Q: What concerns did the judges raise about Vurb?

Judges loved the philosophy but questioned data access, noting much data is stuck in app silos with closed APIs, citing Netflix closing its wish list API. They observed the web cycles between centralization and decentralization, making silo access harder. One judge doubted collections would reach the masses, saying tools for saving and sharing searches tend to stay favorites of a few. Another raised whether Vurb's scale is limited by the templates needed to generate cards for each topic.

Summary

In this video, Bobby discusses how he founded Verb to reinvent surfing the web. He talks about the current fragmented state of the internet and how Verb aims to bring together different services and provide a seamless and connected browsing experience. He demonstrates examples of how Verb can be used to plan a night out or gather information about a person. He also shows how Verb works on mobile devices, allowing users to easily access and share information across different services.

Questions & Answers

Q: What inspired Bobby to create Verb?

Bobby was inspired by his frustration with the fragmented nature of the web and the need to jump from site to site to gather information. He wanted to recreate the magic and connectedness of early internet surfing and designed Verb to bring together different services and provide a more seamless browsing experience.

Q: How does Verb work to bring services together?

Verb acts as an intelligent layer over the internet, weaving together different services that users commonly use. It generates interactive cards from these services and allows users to access and compare information from various sources without having to open multiple tabs or apps. Verb organizes the user's activity into a stream that stays with them and allows for easy navigation and sharing.

Q: How does Verb improve the process of planning a night out?

When planning a night out, Verb allows users to search for movies and generates cards with information from services like IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes. Users can compare movies without leaving the page and can easily find nearby theaters and restaurants. Verb enables the sharing of context across different services, making the process of planning a night out more seamless and efficient.

Q: Can Verb be used for research purposes?

Yes, Verb can be used for research purposes. Bobby demonstrates how Verb can be used to gather information about a person by searching for their name. It generates cards with information from services like CrunchBase, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Users can dive deeper into the person's background, connections, and investments, making it easier to conduct research in one place.

Q: How does Verb work on mobile devices?

Verb is also available on mobile devices and provides the same functionality as on the web. Users can access their search history, search for places, and view interactive cards with information from services like Yelp, Foursquare, and Google Maps. Verb syncs activity and data across devices, making it easy to access and share information on the go.

Q: How does Verb differentiate itself from traditional search engines like Google?

Verb is not a direct replacement for search engines like Google. While search engines focus on organizing and crawling websites, Verb aims to provide a more holistic browsing and decision-making experience. It allows users to connect different services and make comparisons, whether it's for planning a night out or conducting research. Verb focuses on assembling information and providing a seamless user experience.

Q: How does Verb address the challenge of data integration from different services?

Verb is still in the early stages of building its platform and integrating different services. While data integration can be challenging, Verb aims to work with services that have open APIs to initially bring in information. As the platform expands, they also plan to collaborate with brands and service providers to integrate additional content. The goal is to create a unified platform where services can work together and provide a more connected web experience.

Q: Is Verb limited in its scope based on the templates it uses for creating cards?

While Verb uses templates to create cards and provide a consistent user experience, they also allow for customization based on the service or brand. They encourage developers to use common templates but are open to working with providers to create unique and interactive templates that optimize the user experience. The goal is to ensure a great user interface while allowing for flexibility and customization.

Q: How does Verb plan to compete with established search engines like Google?

Verb doesn't necessarily see itself as a direct competitor to search engines like Google, as their goal is not to replace them but to provide a different browsing and decision-making experience. They believe there are unique benefits when services can work together and provide a more connected web. Verb also sees the opportunity to collaborate with search engines and other services to make the overall web experience more intelligent and seamless.

Q: What are the most popular use cases for Verb so far?

The most popular use cases for Verb align with the initial verticals they have focused on, such as places, movies, and media. Users often use Verb to search for places, make reservations, and curate information. The ability to create interactive lists or collections, such as restaurant lists, has resonated with users. However, as the platform expands, there are opportunities to explore other use cases and verticals.

Takeaways

Verb aims to reinvent how users browse and use the internet by bringing together different services and creating a connected and seamless web experience. It focuses on assembling information from various sources and providing interactive cards to make comparisons and decisions easier. While not a direct replacement for search engines, Verb offers a different approach to browsing and decision-making by weaving services together. The platform is still in its early stages, but the vision is to create a more intelligent and connected web.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Bobby founded Vurb to reinvent surfing the internet by weaving together the many services people use. He argues the rapid growth of the web scattered content across millions of sites and single-purpose apps, replacing the fluid link-to-link surfing of the early 90s with stacks of browser tabs and fragmented mobile apps.

• Vurb turns searches into interactive cards drawn from services like IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes. Selecting a movie, comparing titles, finding nearby theaters by location, and locating restaurants near the theater all happen on one page. Activity is organized into a persistent stream, and reviews, reservations, and related actions appear as connected cards.

• Vurb works identically on web and mobile, syncing activity across devices and deep-linking into apps like Yelp, Foursquare, OpenTable, and Google Maps. Users save cards into shared collections that trigger team push notifications, add notes and comments, and share via text or Facebook. Judges praised the philosophy while questioning app-silo data access and templates.