Google buys startup that summarizes online content

  • Associated Press
  • Friday, April 26, 2013 4:26pm
  • Business

SAN FRANCISCO — Google has bought Wavii, a Seattle startup behind an application that condenses online content for time-pressed Web surfers.

Both companies confirmed the deal Friday. As with most of its acquisitions, Google isn’t disclosing how much it paid for Wavii.

Wavii’s technology grasps the context of language so it can summarize the main points in news stories and other content.

Although Wavii’s app is shutting down, CEO Adrian Aoun says the startup’s technology will be used in other Google products.

Google Inc., which is based in Mountain, View, Calif., declined to discuss its plans for Wavii. The natural-language technology could be useful for Google’s Knowledge Graph, an 11-month-old feature that summarizes information in boxes that appear alongside some of Google’s search results.

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