Linkify Announces General Availability for Cutting-Edge SDK That Enables Mobile App Developers to Harness Advances in Semantic Augmented Reality
Tokyo (PRWEB) February 20, 2014 -- Linkify, an innovative startup aiming to change the way people search for information, announced the general availability of its SDK for mobile application developers to download and use. Available immediately, the new SDK supports both the Android and iOS platforms. Linkify offers developers a different approach to mobile search that delivers users relevant results faster. Instead of submitting a traditional word-based query via a search engine, Linkify’s technology is able to recognize, extract and convert “things of interest” to a user and connect them with relevant information from the web. With its new SDK, Linkify is the first to reach an important milestone that the young startup has coined “Semantic AR” (augmented reality).
Linkify is advancing semantic search by detecting keywords based around a user’s intent or level of likely interest. Applying its artificial intelligence-based, machine-learning engine, Linkify is able to recognize the meaning of notable keywords or “interesting things” -- specifically around “people, places or things” -- and then automatically convert them into hyperlinks. Users simply tap on hyperlinks that are presented on a page of content and a small information widget appears, offering the user services such as Wikipedia, Google Images, Twitter, Flickr, YouTube, etc., which they can open to obtain supplemental information on the item of interest. Once the widget is closed, the user can resume reading the original article -- without experiencing any disruption. Linkify delivers users relevant information right to their fingertips, avoiding the typical experience that would redirect them to another site, or require them to open up additional tabs, or launch another app in order to obtain their search result.
Linkify’s first-of-a-kind approach also introduces a new way that mobile app developers can monetize their apps. Linkify’s novel information widget enables the placing of ads within the content, without using unattractive banners that reduce screen real estate or interfere with a mobile app’s UI (user interface). Ads are also contextual so they will be relevant to readers. Developers can utilize Amazon Associate services and setup seller affiliates to the keywords Linkify generates. According to a Google and Nielsen Life 360 study, 3 out of 4 mobile searches trigger follow-up actions by users, whether it be further research, a store visit, a phone call, a purchase or word-of-mouth sharing. On average, each mobile search triggers nearly 2 follow-up actions.
Today’s mobile users expect convenience and speedy results for all of their searches. With the advent of voice-driven technologies, like Siri and other search engine improvements, users also expect search results to get better, faster, and smarter.
Augmenting Real World Text with Information from the Web to Drive “Semantic AR”
We are entering an age where users no longer digest online content using a search engine; increasingly, companies are delivering information users want -- before they even ask for it. As the Semantic Web continues to advance, users will no longer search for information they need, because it will find them based on what they do while browsing and consuming content. Linkify is at the forefront of this movement. Their mobile SDK is the foundation of a new concept where people will eventually be able to identify and research text in the real world automatically. In the future, whether people use Google Glasses, another type of consumer wearable, or leverage other technologies such as OCR, they will be able to obtain information just by looking at a word. The concept sounds far off, but it is not. Linkify is currently developing an SDK for wearable devices and plans to continue helping mobile developers advance their mobile apps.
Linkify’s Lightening Fast Keyword Extraction Cloud
Because performance is critical, Linkify’s server-side system is lightening fast, scalable, and lightweight. Linkify’s Keyword Extraction Cloud evaluates thousands of keywords simultaneously. In order to minimize its response time, any content or text being searched is automatically split into chunks and simultaneously processed by numerous machines in Linkify’s cloud deployment.
Ikuya Yamada, Linkify’s co-founder and CTO, stated, “We’re really pleased to achieve this important semantic AR milestone. We’re also excited to make our SDK available to the Android and iOS communities and hope that developers can leverage the advances we’ve made around keyword extraction and entity linking. We plan to continue to raise the bar around the user experience while also ensuring that we never disrupt the performance or UX of a developer’s app.”
Interested developers can use Linkify's SDK here.
Documentation for Android can be found here.
Documentation for iOS can be found here.
About Linkify
Linkify is a Tokyo-based start-up developing innovative new ways to connect people to information. As part of Studio Ousia, Linkify’s aim is to raise the standards for semantic search and the mobile user experience. Investors include Nissay Capital and Seed Technology Venture Partners. For more information please visit http://www.ousia.jp.
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Carmen Hughes, Ignite Public Relations, http://www.ignitepr.com, +1 650.453.8553, [email protected]
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