DEMO, the startup conference that helped introduce Waze and Evernote to the world, is underway this week in San Francisco. And Boston is well represented, with three startups in the demonstration queue—Lifebox, Celect and Shoobx.
So far I’ve only checked out Lifebox, and I’m still deciding whether I believe it could catch on. Lifebox is a social site that aims to help people open up more about their lives, by presenting a new, semi-provocative question each day. For instance, the first question—which went up on Friday—was this one:
Users then answer the question (with words and/or images), and once they do, that unlocks the answers of everyone else who’s answered.
The founder, Adam Noble of Norwood, told me the site is “all about creating deeper connections with people.” The former Hearst executive said he was inspired by chats he's had over a glass of whiskey with his father-in-law. “We talked about past and present life events, and the moments were so therapeutic and so good,” Noble said. “I wanted to create those with other people I care about, but I didn’t have the time for that.”
Lifebox aims to be the place for that sort of connection—though to do so, it does have to convince a lot of people to use another social site, even if it’s technically not very time-consuming.
The site also has to generate questions every day that people will find compelling. I love the first day’s question, and I’m sure it received great answers. But after signing up and answering yesterday’s question—“What is your biggest pet peeve?”—I couldn’t think of an especially interesting answer, and noticed that other users didn’t seem to be able to, either.
However, overall I’m into the idea, and think if Lifebox can come up with provocative questions every day, it could gain a following. Clearly the organizers of DEMO feel the same, since Lifebox was selected as one of just 40 startups pitching this time around.
As I said I haven’t looked into the other two companies from Boston, but here are the full details on all three companies (information provided by DEMO):
Celect (Cambridge)
- The Celect Optimization Platform, powered by the Celect Choice Engine, allows retailers to understand how a specific customer shopping at a specific location chooses from an assortment of products. Celect, a big data predictive analytics platform, enables merchandisers, retail planners, and inventory analysts to better determine “what to put where.”
- $385,000 in angel funding has been received to date. Additional funding will be announced in 2015.
Lifebox (Norwood)
- Lifebox is a web and Android app that uses Q&A to stimulate personal storytelling and connect people in a richer way using digital technologies.
- Raised $538,000 in convertible debt from angels in August 2 2013.
Shoobx (Cambridge)
- Shoobx is a system of record, execution, and engagement built to simplify standard corporate legal processes so entrepreneurs can focus on what matters most: their company. Shoobx empowers all of a company's stakeholders—from employees to investors—to manage corporate governance, equity management, and human resources processes in one place.
- Undisclosed amount of funding from Steve Papa and other angel investors and entrepreneurs.
Images/screenshots courtesy of Lifebox.
