Blippar

Blippar
Founders Ambarish Mitra (CEO), Omar Tayeb (CTO)
Founded in London (UK) in 2011
Office Locations London (UK), New York (USA), San Francisco (USA), Los Angeles (USA), Chicago (USA), Amsterdam (Netherlands), Tokyo, (Japan), Istanbul (Turkey), New Delhi (India), Mumbai (India), Bangalore (India), Singapore (Asia)
Number of employees 300+
Number of locations 14
Products Blippar app for iOS / Windows / Android / Blippbuilder
Subsidiaries Layar, Binocular

Blippar is a visual discovery app, using augmented reality and machine learning to bring the physical world to life through smartphones and wearables.[1] Once the Blippar app is downloaded, people can blipp ("scan") objects they’re curious about and unlock content.

Since launching in the U.K. in 2011, Blippar has partnered with brands and media owners in the world, including Condé Nast,[2] TIME Inc.,[3] Unilever,[4] Procter & Gamble,[5] PepsiCo,[6] Nestlé,[7] Heinz,[8] Coca-Cola,[9] Anheuser Busch,[10] L'Oréal,[11] and Jaguar.[12] Blippar has been recognized as one of the fastest growing companies by CNN,[13] CNBC,[14] Forbes[15] and FastCompany.[16]

In June 2014 Blippar acquired[17] Dutch AR player Layar, based in Amsterdam, forming the world's largest AR userbase.[18] The company is currently considered a "unicorn," having a valuation of over $1 billion.[19]

Blippar was ranked Number 19 on CNBC's Top Disrupter List.[20] Recently, in January 2016, Blippar was also named on Bloomberg's list of top UK Business Innovators and recognized by Business Insider as one of the most innovative companies in tech.[21][22]

History

2011-2012: Founding and Launch

Blippar was founded in the U.K. in 2011 by Ambarish Mitra (Chief Executive Officer), Omar Tayeb (Chief Technology Officer), Steve Spencer (Chief Experience Officer) and Jessica Butcher (Director). The firm's first U.S. offices opened in New York one year later.[23]

2013: SaaS tool Blippbuilder Launch, and International Expansion

The company launched Blippbuilder, a web-based Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) tool that allows businesses to create their own AR content in September.[24]

Expanding its efforts, Blippar, opened its first Asian office in Delhi, India in February,[25] followed by an Istanbul office.[26]

2014: Google Glass Developments & Layar Acquisition

During the time of Google Glass, Blippar demonstrated their technology on the wearable device in March.[27] This was the first instance of image recognition on the platform at the time.[28][29] Later on, Blippar introduced games for Glass using image recognition, AR and gesture recognition.[30][31][32] In November 2014, the company partnered with Jaguar to launch a multi-platform campaign on both mobile and Google Glass.[33][34]

In June, Blippar announced that it had acquired Amsterdam-based AR pioneer Layar for an undisclosed amount.[35] At the time, the combined companies totalled 50 million mobile app users, as well as "5,000 brands and publishers and over 100,000 self-publishing partners" in over 175 countries.[36]

2015-Present Day: Visual Search Launch and Acquisitions

In 2015, The firm announced it had raised $45 million in funding from undisclosed investors.[37]

In March 2015, the company unveiled plans to include new "visual search" capabilities in its app, which will allow users to perform a search for information about an object by pointing their mobile device at the object.[38] An early proof-of-concept was shown to work on apples, dogs[39] and cars.[40] The company announced plans to make all American sports logos, English-language music album covers, fiction book covers, DVD cases and movie posters "blippable" by April, 2015.[41]

In May 2015, Blippar was ranked Number 19 on CNBC's Top Disrupter List.[42]

In June 2015, Blippar invested in smart specs company WaveOptics. WaveOptics is developing low-energy lenses that provide a live display for the wearer but can be fitted into ordinary spectacles frames.[43] In October 2015, Blippar's R&D lab launched an educational virtual reality app for Google Cardboard. [44] On October 29, 2015 Blippar announced its acquisition of Binocular, an AR and VR app maker with a focus on Virtual Try-On.[45]

In January 2016, Blippar was named on Bloomberg's list of top UK Business Innovators and recognized by Business Insider as one of the most innovative companies in tech.[46][47]

In March, Blippar announced their Series D Funding Round of $54m, led by Khazanah Nasional Berhad, the strategic investment fund of the Government of Malaysia.[48][49] .[50] The Financial Times named the company one of the best-funded UK start-ups. [51]

Awards and recognition

References

  1. ↑ "Jaguar's Google Glass App Brings Print Ads to Life". AdWeek. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  2. ↑ "Condé Nast".
  3. ↑ "TIME Inc.".
  4. ↑ "Unilever".
  5. ↑ "P&’s CoverGirl simplifies skincare discovery with augmented reality".
  6. ↑ "PepsiCo".
  7. ↑ "Nestlé".
  8. ↑ "Heinz".
  9. ↑ "Coca-Cola".
  10. ↑ "Anheuser Busch".
  11. ↑ "L'Oréal".
  12. ↑ "Jaguar".
  13. ↑ "CNN".
  14. ↑ "CNBC".
  15. ↑ "Forbes".
  16. ↑ "FastCompany".
  17. ↑ "Blippar acquires Layar to make largest AR userbase".
  18. ↑ "Blippar Acquires Layar, Creating World's Largest AR Userbase".
  19. ↑ "The $1bn unicorns". The Sunday Times. March 29, 2015.
  20. ↑ "Blippar 2015 Disruptor 50".
  21. ↑ "Blippar - Bloomberg Business Innovators". Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  22. ↑ "The 21 most innovative startups in tech". Business Insider. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  23. ↑ "Blippar Meet the company".
  24. ↑ "Blippar Empowers Publishers to Build Industry Leading Augmented Reality Experiences With New Self-Service Tool".
  25. ↑ "3D advertising app Blippar debuts in India".
  26. ↑ "Blippar, Türkiye ofisini açtı".
  27. ↑ "Blippar Introduces Image Recognition And AR Advertising On Google Glass".
  28. ↑ "Blippar brings object image recognition to Google Glass".
  29. ↑ "New Google Glass app makes objects interactive in real time".
  30. ↑ "Blippar launches a platform for augmented reality games on Google Glass".
  31. ↑ "Blippar demos augmented reality gaming on Google Glass".
  32. ↑ "Blippar shows off 'first true AR game' for Google Glass".
  33. ↑ "Jaguar revives British Villains theme in Google Glass-equipped campaign".
  34. ↑ "Jaguar's Google Glass App Brings Print Ads to Life".
  35. ↑ "UK Startup Blippar Acquires AR Pioneer Layar".
  36. ↑ "Blippar Acquires Layar Creating World's Largest AR Userbase".
  37. ↑ "With $45 Million In Funding, Augmented Reality Platform Blippar Is Rethinking Search".
  38. ↑ "Blippar develops 'visual browser for the physical world'".
  39. ↑ "Blippar Visual Search Demo With a Puppy!".
  40. ↑ "Blippar app visual overhaul aims to identify everything around you".
  41. ↑ "Forget words, Blippar app lets you search the web using your smartphone CAMERA".
  42. ↑ "Blippar 2015 Disruptor 50".
  43. ↑ "Wave Optics".
  44. ↑ "Blippar Launches R&D Lab and Expands Into Virtual Reality wth an Educational Google Cardboard App".
  45. ↑ "Blippar AR Platform Acquires Binocular to Dive Into the Virtual Try-On".
  46. ↑ "Blippar - Bloomberg Business Innovators". Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  47. ↑ "The 21 most innovative startups in tech". Business Insider. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  48. ↑ "Blippar augmented reality search engine raises $54 million Series D". Retrieved 2016-03-02.
  49. ↑ "Blippar raises $54m in boost for UK tech scene". Retrieved 2016-03-02.
  50. ↑ "Blippar raises $54 million to continue its mission to 'build something bigger than the internet itself'". Retrieved 2016-03-02.
  51. ↑ "Blippar becomes one of best-funded UK start-ups". Retrieved 2016-03-02.
  52. ↑ "Fast Company's Most Innovative Company: Augmented Reality".
  53. ↑ "Meet the 2015 CNBC Disruptor 50 companies". CNBC. May 12, 2015.
  54. ↑ "Bloomberg's Top UK Business Innovators". Bloomberg.
  55. ↑ "The 21 Most Innovative Startups in Tech". Business Insider.
  56. ↑ "MEF Unveils Winners for the 11th Annual Meffys Awards".
  57. ↑ "Mapp Media Named In UK's Top 50 Mobile Innovators".
  58. ↑ "White Bull".
  59. ↑ "Bully Awards".
  60. ↑ "UK Government Announces Winners Of The GREAT Tech Awards".
  61. ↑ "Blippar "The Most Innovative Mobile Technology" at MWC".
  62. ↑ "LeWeb Award 2012".
  63. ↑ "DBA Design Effectiveness Award: JuiceBurst & Blippar (Gold)". Effective Design.
  64. ↑ "CIM Marketing Excellence Awards 2016: Camelot Christmas Augmented Reality Scratchcards - Finalist". CIM.
  65. ↑ "CIM Marketing Excellence Awards 2016: Camelot Christmas Augmented Reality Scratchcards - Finalist". Summit Awards.
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