Apr 11th
Hey guys, Dennis here.
If you’ve ever met me, you know I get really excited about how all the technology we carry around will change the way we explore the world. When Naveen and I started Foursquare four years ago, it was to help build that future.
Today, I’m really happy to announce we’ve secured additional funding to help us realize that vision. We’ve raised $41 million - a combination of new investment from the Silver Lake Waterman growth debt fund, as well as convertible debt from all of our existing investors (Andreessen Horowitz, O’Reilly AlphaTech Ventures, Spark Capital, and Union Square Ventures).
The stuff we’re building takes a lot of work. Look at yesterday’s big update, for example. The most amazing thing about it is that it tells you interesting things around you, anywhere in the world, the second you open the app. That’s not easy. We have to crunch your 3,500,000,000 check-ins, layer your social data over it, semantically analyze our tens of millions of tips, and take a look at real-time activity around you. We do all that in under a second, all to recommend two or three places that are perfect for you.
To us, this is like when Google came and revolutionized web search. Suddenly, you could find things on the internet. The real world is the same way. Four years ago when we started Foursquare, it was really hard to discover a new retro arcade that opened up on a side street, or to make sure you weren’t overlooking the best dish on the menu, or to know a good friend was just around the corner. Sometimes, we think of Foursquare as having the ability to give people superpowers for exploring the real world.
But we’ve got a ton left to do. We’re building tools for local businesses to connect with their customers. We’re making search better, every single day. We’re building that location layer for the internet - the platform that all other companies use to power location in their apps. This takes time and a lot of work, and great investors.
So, today, thanks to our investors, the 1,300,000 businesses using Foursquare, and especially the 33,000,000 of you who have given us a try. Stay tuned… we’ve got a lot more coming in 2013 and beyond!
