INTERVIEW : Doug Imbruce (CEO of Qwiki)

For those that don’t know TechCrunch Disrupt was won this year by Qwiki.  In short (more below), Qwiki is a visual/spoken entry on a specific subject, be that WW2 or Cameron Diaz.  It’s rare these days to see a product that makes you sit up and think “hmmmmm, now that’s something that could change things”.  Qwiki is one of those products.  Not only because of the storm of controversy it’s courted to date but it’s simplicity.  I’ve been lucky enough to be checking out Qwiki for a few weeks now and to say it’s useful.  Don’t get me wrong if you enjoy reading and text is your thing, Qwiki is not for you but if you are in the 30-75% that learn best through text and pictures then Qwiki will be amazing for you.  I grabbed Doug Imbruce (CEO) for a quick interview.

Congrats on winning TechCrunch Disrupt – what’s the reception been like since then?

We’ve received an overwhelmingly positive response. Just after Disrupt, we hadn’t released our alpha version yet. We thought about holding off until it was more polished, but we ultimately decided against that – there was such high demand to get a deeper look at Qwiki that we knew we couldn’t make people wait much longer. We also saw this as an incredible opportunity to get feedback from users. With this feedback we can refine the overall Qwiki experience and perfect our first product – the reference tool.

Ok… what is Qwiki? Who should use it? Why?

What most people don’t realize about Qwiki is that it’s more than a reference tool; this tool is just the first product offering. Qwiki is actually a technology platform that delivers information as an experience. The technology scans sources across the Web to generate rich, interactive information experiences on the fly – these experiences are made up of the most important and relevant bits of information about a particular topic, paired with images, videos, and other rich media. Qwiki isn’t setting out to replace search engines and other research tools. Instead, it’s providing users with a new way to experience information that is fun, interactive and engaging. The ability to interact with the content within Qwikis creates a network effect; each Qwiki exists in a universe of others revealing an interconnected Web of information.

(Sample Qwikis : Aurora, London Bridge, Jay-Z, Frank Sinatra, Picasso, Miami and tons more here)

What made you create this?

My life’s mission is to elevate information technology to the point where it looks and acts human. The idea for Qwiki specifically came to me on a flight to Buenos Aires about 18 months ago. I was scanning the Web to find information on the city to prepare for my trip. I wanted to get a little bit of the history, figure out which landmarks I wanted to visit and learn some current statistics as well. I was pretty disappointed and frustrated by the process. I sorted through lists and lists of links, had to conduct several different searches to find what I was looking for, and in the end I was left with a very fragmented set of information. I then realized that the Web doesn’t need another search engine, but instead needed a new way for consumers to experience information. Most Web users, just like me, are overwhelmed by the amount of information that is now available on the Web. Qwiki allows them to access and experience the most pertinent elements quickly and easily.

What has early feedback told you? How has crowdsourcing feedback helped you vs. old school feedback?

As I said before, the feedback we’ve been getting has been overwhelmingly positive. Right after TechCrunch Disrupt when only a relatively small group of people had demoed Qwiki, we heard some skepticism. Some people thought that the “cool factor” would wear off after a few uses, others questioned the use cases. However, after releasing the alpha just last week (Friday, October 22nd) more and more people are coming around. We’ve seen people all over Twitter take back their concern or doubts and say how useful, engaging, and disruptive they think this Qwiki product is now that they’ve been able to play around with it on their own. The public’s response has exceeded our wildest expectations.

How do you counter the criticism that it “dumbs down comprehension, critical thinking, analysis, and learning?”

We want to make it clear that Qwiki isn’t trying to replace search engines or other research tools. Instead, Qwiki is a supplemental tool, which allows people to get a short, fun, engaging and interactive information experience.  As a matter of fact, we’ve seen the opposite effect – individuals are introduced to new topics via Qwiki, their imaginations activated, and turn to search engines for further, detailed research.

How do you validate the information coming in? What is automated?

Using coded algorithms, Qwiki crawls the Web to get the information, which then goes through an automated filtering process. This is how we can mass-produce Qwikis on the fly. In the future, publishing partners will provide us information via an API, which we will transform into Qwikis.

Will people be able to create their own Qwikis or update other ones?

Absolutely!  We have developed a remarkable technology that has allowed us to create a corpus of Qwikis from the Web’s most popular topics using unstructured data; our next application will allow individuals to merge their social network profiles into a personal Qwiki (search “Keith Rabois” on qwiki.com <http://qwiki.com/>  for a sample of a professional profile, and “Gregory Smith” on qwiki.com <http://qwiki.com/>  for a sample of a personal profile).  Next, we’ll allow local businesses – restaurants, hotels, rug shops, etc. – to create Qwikis by merging their Yelp, Citysearch, and other profiles.  Our technology can be applied to any information verticals. Down the road we absolutely envision giving people the ability to create their own Qwikis describing any topic they’d like. This is why we refer to Qwiki as a platform, because it enables any publisher (or person) to transform their content into a more valuable experience.

How should PR/comms people use Qwiki?

An interesting use case is the ability for the Qwiki technology to transform LinkedIn profiles into Qwikis. For an example, search Keith Rabois in Qwiki and you will see his professional profile. Once this becomes more broadly used and more individual profiles are available, PR people could use this as a new way to brief their clients before an in-person meeting or phone interview. Qwiki will also allow for the dissemination of information in a more entertaining format – ideally companies will transmit Qwikis to popularize new products or news in addition to press releases.

Say a client had a Qwiki but something was incorrect – based on my understanding – the ‘beef’ should be with Wikipedia or other similar site – is this correct? Do brands/pros (from a brand reputation management POV) have any say on what is shown, etc. Is there a final list of sources/APIs you are pulling in from?

We’re working on exposing the sources, but as discussed, we’re focused on the reference use case currently, which means that yes, most of the text is from wikipedia, along with about 25% of the media.  We’ve clearly labeled this at the bottom of each Qwiki page and we provide links to all source media on the “detail view” of each image or video clip.

Cryptic!  When is iPhone/iPad version coming out? How will it differ?  Will it use any of the other features/functions unique to the iPad?)

The iPad and iPhone highlight the appeal of Qwiki. These devices, particularly the iPhone, are mobile devices. Therefore these users will appreciate the ability to experience information and consume rich media on the go. Qwiki will become the more obvious choice. Tablets, including the iPad, call for a different type of use. Consumers using a tablet look for a more intimate expereince, and therefore will find Qwiki more attractive than reading through text to access information. The “interactive living room” which seems to be top of mind recently, also opens up a whole new audience and will expand the opportunities for Qwiki.

How are you monetizing this puppy? Pre-roll, in-stream, app download?

Right now, we’re focused on product innovation over monetization. But advertisers will definitely be able to utilize the Qwiki technology in a number of ways to help extend the reach of their brand.

How very Facebook of you!  Ok personal one:  How do you quash the Firehouse of information coming at you? What do you use?

Overall, the reason we’ve worked so hard to create Qwiki is because we haven’t found many tools that help control information overload.  In general, however, Web behavior (including my own) is moving towards curated environments: I spend most of my time inside Twitter, and most of my money inside Gilt and Groupon.  Because of curated experiences, I am conducting far fewer traditional Web searches.  Twitter lately has been incredibly useful and even self-affirming. Whenever we’re having a tough day at the office we like to search for “qwiki” and read how excited our users are.  That’s what keeps us working so hard.  Even though I grew up as part of a generation immersed in social media, it’s incredible once you’re managing a brand and how remarkable and accretive being part of the ecosystem can be.  We’ve actually hired an intern just to manage the various channels through which we interact with users (http://blog.qwiki.com/2010/10/14/introducing-erica/), which has proven very effective.