[ad_1]
At its latest camp, VC firm and accelerator Betaworks was looking for startups building native applications made possible by artificial intelligence.
The program was First announced in May. To explain this focus, managing partner John Borthwick wrote at the time that although things like chatbots and AI-based writing assistants exist, “we are not yet living in the future we imagine.”
In other words, despite advances in AI technology, Borthwick said that “when end users like us are faced with a task or project, we are confident that it can be done faster, better and smarter, by harnessing the power of AI and off-the-shelf tools.” What is available to us at that moment is surprisingly limited.
Naturally, Betaworks hopes its camp participants can change that. Its camps are 12-week thematic programs, where each participating startup receives $500,000 from a group of investors. The latest program culminates with Demo Day on Wednesday.
Betaworks partner (and former TechCrunch deputy editor) Jordan Crook said that accepted companies ultimately fall into three broad categories: “agent” B2B, personal software, and hardware-enabled AI.
Here are the startups:
Internet It breaks up the “dumb rectangles” on the web, where we have to open tab after tab while trying to accomplish tasks like comparison shopping. It is building a new model of web applications that AI can understand and use, as well as a web agent that can turn user intent into action within those “web applications.”
Ursula You artificially construct living characters that you say have feelings, experience needs, form memories, and exhibit unique behavioral patterns. Her first creation is a children’s companion also called Ursula.
Eisai Helps students craft their personal narrative for college applications and more. The company says it does this ethically by automating the process of helping students relate their experiences and turning those experiences into compelling narratives.
Automatic operation It creates AI agents that help users navigate software in real-time, so companies can improve product adoption and reduce slowdowns. It uses self-driving technology that learns the software and integrates with session replay databases to understand user intent.
Alice camera It offers a native AI mirrorless camera that connects to the user’s phone, making it easy to capture professional-quality content. It automates aspects of camera functions and simplifies post-production.
design He created a Chrome extension that overlays the live app, allowing product designers to make changes. AI writes the code and pushes it directly into the code base, with developers approving the code before it is published.
Sarama Builds a dog collar that analyzes dog sounds to give owners a better understanding of their pet’s emotional and physical needs. Its founders worked in animal communication research.
Tattoo It simplifies complex IT projects by automatically documenting interactions such as meetings, emails, documents, and project management applications, and then delivering insights about those interactions to the right people on the team.
Hopscotch Labs He designed an app called BeeBot, which turns on when you wear AirPods or headphones, then provides information about nearby places, people, and events while you walk. Among its founders is Dennis Crowley of Foursquare.
[ad_2]