A city exploration app which uses machine learning to make personalised recommendations is raising £400,000 to expand into new locations.
KOMPAS was founded in April 2015 and currently operates in six UK cities including London, Birmingham, Exeter and most recently Liverpool, as well as in Berlin and Munich.
The free app uses machine intelligence, data and machine learning algorithms to providers users with personalised recommendations on where to go and what to do, with a focus on unique, independent locations and hidden gems.
The content in the app is curated by city locals and recommendations are selected to match a user’s particular needs and interests.
KOMPAS has already closed a £165,000 pre-seed round of angel investment and is now hoping to raise £400,000 through its crowdfunding campaign on Seedrs, with that money being used to develop the algorithms and product and to scale the company into new cities.
The app was born in Munich when co-founders Tom Charman and Olivia Higgs were on their year abroad in university and “struggled to go beyond the obvious, and discover the more authentic side of the city”.
Together with chief product officer Kurt Henderson, they began creating a platform directing explorers to the offbeat, local places.
The crowdfunding campaign comes a week after KOMPAS launched its newly redesigned app last week.
“In the newly released update, we’ve responded to user feedback by giving the app a whole new look and feel, as well as adding new features,” Henderson said.
“We’re really proud of the product’s progress in the latest version, and we have even bigger plans.
“We love the influence that our community has on the development of the company, which is why we’ve decided to open up the opportunity for our supporters to join our mission with this crowdfunding campaign.”