Wavii

Wavii operated as a technology firm specializing in news aggregation and summarization, ultimately positioning itself for a strategic acquisition. Founded in Seattle in 2008 by Adrian Aoun, a former Microsoft employee, the company focused on tackling information overload for the general consumer. Aoun's background includes time at Microsoft and, following Wavii, leading special projects for Larry Page at Google/Alphabet, where he founded Sidewalk Labs and helped establish Google's AI division before starting the healthcare company Forward.

The company's core product was an iPhone application that allowed users to follow specific topics of interest, such as companies, public figures, or sports teams. Instead of full articles, users received short, summarized updates in a feed. This service was powered by a proprietary system based on natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning. The technology automatically processed vast amounts of web content from news sites, blogs, and other sources, then identified, de-duplicated, and structured the information into concise summaries of key events. The primary benefit for users was receiving decluttered, relevant information in a simplified, easy-to-digest format.

Wavii's business trajectory was centered on technology development and strategic positioning within the tech ecosystem. The firm secured $2.29 million in funding over two seed rounds from notable investors including Battery Ventures, SV Angel, Felicis Ventures, and angel investor Paul Buchheit. After a period of operating in stealth mode to solve complex technical challenges, the company drew significant market attention. In April 2013, after a reported bidding war with Apple, Wavii was acquired by Google for an estimated sum exceeding $30 million. Following the acquisition, the 25-person Wavii team was integrated into Google's Knowledge Graph division to apply its NLP technology to enhance Google's web search and summarization capabilities. The Wavii application was subsequently discontinued as its technology was absorbed into Google's product ecosystem.

Keywords: news aggregation, natural language processing, machine learning, content summarization, mobile application, Google acquisition, semantic technology, topic following, information feed, Adrian Aoun