Meet Keen, Google's experimental AI-powered Pinterest rival
Despite being the internet giant it is, Google has struggled to make its mark in the social media space. The company has already tried a number of services (remember Google+ or Orkut?), and now, in another such step in this direction, it is launching Keen - an AI-powered social network to take on Pinterest. Here's all you need to know about it.
Experimental Pinterest-like service from Google's Area 120 lab
Coming out of Area 120, Google's unit dedicated to experimental projects, Keen is like an automated version of Pinterest that lets you curate content on topics of interest. You create a Keen (interest) via web/app, add a topic of interest or something you want to research, pick related suggestions, and the service will track those topics to keep your pinboard of content ready.
Usage makes collections better
The collection of content, including videos and blog posts, curated by Keen for your interest will get better as you continue to organize it with more related topics. Not to mention, it also takes into account the content you like and uses it to make the recommendations better. The whole experience is powered by Google Search and machine learning algorithms.
Liked content or 'gems' serve as seeds of discovery
"Even if you're not an expert on a topic, you can start curating a keen and save a few interesting 'gems' or links that you find helpful," said Keen co-founder CJ Adams. "These bits of content act like seeds and help keen discover more and more related content over time."
You can collaborate on Keen, as well
Once a Keen is created, Google will let you share and collaborate on it with friends, family members, who could also add more to the collection. "On Keen, you say what you want to spend more time on, and then curate content from the web and people you trust to help make that happen," Adam added in his statement.
Google will get interest data from Keen
While Keen's reliance on Google's machine learning algorithms, which are fed on bigger datasets, give the service an edge over Pinterest, it remains to be seen how it evolves in the coming days. It must also be noted that the "interest activity" on this app directly appears to go to Google's servers, where it is collated with other information the company has on you.
Available on Android and iOS
As of now, Keen is available on the web and Android, although the latter is only a web-based version. There is no word on the iOS version of the service yet.
