Just when we thought Google was slowing down on its acquisitions, the search giant strikes again. This time, Google's focus is on Emu, a mobile messaging startup that combines messaging and contextual intelligence.
Neither Google nor Emu revealed the details of the buyout, but it is easy to see why Google would be interested in Emu. The startup's mobile messaging app runs on an algorithm that can detect what users are chatting about and inject links based on the content of users' chats. For example, if one user sends a message about getting dinner, Emu will post links to the nearest restaurants in the area. If the other person types the name of a restaurant, Emu digs into the Yelp app and posts a link straight to the restaurant's reviews.
Emu's monitoring tools seem the perfect fit for Google Hangouts, particularly since Hangouts does not yet have an algorithm for perusing something as mundane as mobile messages. A few pundits believe Emu could very well be what Google needs to launch advertisements on chat, something that has been ubiquitous in search, email and social networking sites but have never made it to mobile messaging. Once Google tweaks the Emu algorithm to fit its needs, businesses could probably start paying for their ads to show up right below users' messages. For instance, a sushi bar could pay for its ad to show up in all messages containing the word "sushi."
Emu is not only designed to monitor mobile messages, though. Its algorithm can also be used to track what users are talking about in their text messages and interact with the phones other apps. Any mention of a day or date, for example, brings up the user's calendar to make sure he is available on that day.
Google and Emu's relationship runs deep. Emu co-founder and chief executive Gummi Hafsteinsson worked five years for Google before jumping ship to manage Apple's Siri virtual assistant for the iPhone. Thankfully for Hafsteinsson, Google does not hold grudges that long.
"Hey, did you hear? We're joining Google! That's right. And we're super excited," says Emu on its app website. "But to focus on our next chapter, we have to close the last one. As of August 25, 2014, we'll be shutting down the Emu app. It will no longer be available in the App Store, and existing users won't be able to send, receive, or download messages."
Emu has survived for more than two years on venture funding, with around $1.5 million raised from investors including Draper Fisher Jurvetson, KPCB, Kleiner Perkins and Menlo Ventures.
