New “what’s happening in Lisbon” app launches today

Soko, a local discovery app that combines artificial intelligence and human input to identify the best websites, events, and experiences, launches today, with Lisbon as its starting market.

The project was founded by two Portuguese entrepreneurs, João Albino (formerly of Urbvan) and João Graça (formerly of Unbabel), and aims to promote local events and communities, starting in the Portuguese capital.

This is “more than just a concert calendar: the app aggregates events scattered across the internet and personalises the experience for each user,” the technology company explains.

In other words, “events scattered across websites, social networks, WhatsApp groups, or even street posters are aggregated by Soko through an AI tool and the contribution of the community itself, for example, simply sending a photo of a street poster is enough for the platform to create an event.”

When asked about the initial target markets, Albino, Soko’s CEO, said that Lisbon is the starting market. “We want to show that it’s possible to create a differentiating social platform from here and then export it to the world (…) that’s really the ambition.”

“The technology was designed from the beginning to scale immediately: any user, from Tokyo to New York, can chat with Soko to get city information, submit events, and add places they like,” he added.

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, “where we have successfully piloted, will be the natural next step in international expansion, along with other markets that we will explore later this year,” he said.

Regarding revenue, Albino explains that at this launch phase, there are no targets, “especially since the platform is and will remain free.”

The priority “is to prove its usefulness and gain traction with users, communities, and event promoters, who are the ones who bring the city to life.

“Monetisation will come later and naturally, possibly through ‘premium’ features for local businesses that want more visibility,” the CEO tells Lusa.

In June alone, the app has already gathered more than 1,000 events in the city, from popular festivals to exhibitions.

According to the startup, Soko’s technology helps to organise, personalise, and scale this knowledge.

“One of the available communication channels is WhatsApp: it’s possible to send a message asking what events are available. ‘what can I do with my children tomorrow?’ or ‘Where can I see an exhibition this week?’, to receive an immediate response, based on the conversation history,” says the tech company.

This is also the story of the company’s origin: “The team’s first test was through WhatsApp, with a bot that invited people to chat and discover the city, as opposed to the endless scrolling of social networks.”

Founders Albino and João Graça (CTO), “met around a common conviction: to prove that it is possible to build technology in Portugal to serve a vision with real impact on the lives of people and the cities where they live.”

João Albino co-founded Urbvan, “one of the most successful startup stories in Latin America’s urban mobility ecosystem,” which was acquired by a Nasdaq-listed firm.

João Graça, in turn, co-founded Unbabel, a world leader in AI-assisted translation.

The new platform is designed to adapt to different geographies: anyone, in any city, can use it, contribute, and search.

And while we are on the subject of startups, no less than 27 national startups will be taking part in this year’s ‘Web Summit Rio’ edition, opening today and running until June 11.

Startup Portugal, the entity responsible for boosting the national entrepreneurial ecosystem, and Unicorn Factory Lisboa, the largest platform for startup programmes and innovation hubs in Portugal, are present at the event for the fourth consecutive year.

They have seen to it that the 27 national startups are travelling to Rio de Janeiro “under the Business Abroad programme, which supports the presence of Portuguese startups at major global technology events, as well as through the internationalisation support programmes of Unicorn Factory Lisboa.

In total, the companies making up this year’s Portuguese delegation employ almost 270 people in Lisbon, Funchal, Aveiro, and Mirandela.

“Web Summit Rio is a strategic platform for Portuguese startups seeking to scale their businesses and accelerate international expansion. The Brazilian market remains a natural priority for many of these companies, because of the size and dynamism of the ecosystem, along with the cultural proximity, which facilitates the creation of investment and growth opportunities,” Miguel d’Aguiar, CEO of Startup Portugal, has said in a press release.

“Brazil is an attractive market for many Portuguese startups, and Web Summit Rio is the right stage to create new opportunities for growth, investment, and collaboration. Our presence expands our commitment to supporting startups with global ambitions and building bridges for innovation between Portugal and Brazil,” added Gil Azevedo, CEO of Unicorn Factory Lisbon.

The next international stop for startups will be Viva Tech in Paris, from 17 to 20 June.

Source: LUSA