Hakia raising $5M for semantic search
Semantic search outfit Hakia is on its way to launching in 2008, with a new $5 million round from an undisclosed investor.
The New York-based company opened for beta testing earlier this year, and has since been adding on services, including a recently-added option to “meet” others who perform the same searches (although people seem to mainly be using the feature for classified ads).
It also recently released a survey result showing that 17% of its beta users consider the engine better overall, and 7% say they will use it exclusively. To test it out yourself, side-by-side with Google, check out this link.
Hakia will complete development and launch in 2008. The site has so far received $2 million of the $5 million total funding round, reported by VentureWire (subscription required). The money came from a previous investor, some of which are Noble Grossart Investments, Alexandra Investment Management, Prokom Investments, KVK, and several angel investors.
Next Story: Bebo uses Facebook’s developer platform to tap its own user base
Previous Story: Goojet wins gold at Le Web — with mobile organizer
About the Author, Chris Morrison
Chris Morrison writes about cleantech and environmental issues for VentureBeat, with occasional forays into gaming and semantic technology. He got his start writing about tech for Business 2.0 magazine, but quickly realized new media was the ticket when that institution closed its doors in 2007. Chris has also covered public equities and regulatory issues. He originally hails from southern Virginia, graduated from Evergreen State College in Washington, and now lives in San Francisco.