Wajam (www.wajam.com) has launched a beta version of its ‘social search’ browser extension that works in Google, Bing and Yahoo. Wajam adds a layer of results, above the usual search engine results, where users can find content that their friends have shared on social networks like Facebook and Twitter. Users can also search for their personal browser bookmarks and those from Delicious.
“We’re excited to launch Wajam and allow users to start finding results from their friends in
their favorite search engine,” said founder and CEO Martinâ€Luc Archambault. “Using Wajam is
like having unlimited access to an online library packed with your friends’ knowledge. I recently
searched for information on ‘pitching startups’ in Google and Wajam added personalized results
that my friends had shared on Facebook and Twitter. Wajam saves me hours of research and
lets me find content from my social feeds that I wouldn’t be able to retrieve any other way.”
When users download Wajam and link their personal sources (Facebook, Twitter, Delicious, and
Bookmarks), Wajam starts showcasing relevant, social content right in their search engine.
Wajam is certified by TRUSTe and Verisign, and each user’s content and personal information is
kept confidential and secure on Rackspace cloud servers.
“What sets Wajam apart is that it takes less than a minute to get started and it brings users
value without asking them to change the way they do things – they can keep using the same
search engine and continue sharing content on their favorite social networks,” said
Archambault.
Funded by startup lab and accelerator Bolidea, Wajam is compatible with major browsers like
Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome and Safari, and works on PC and Mac. The company plans to
add more social network sources to the service and support more search engines in the near
future. “Wajam wants to bring your friends’ knowledge with you anywhere that you search
online. The future goes beyond search engines,” said Olivier Cabanes, partner, Bolidea.
Social search is the next big trend for web search. Search and social networks are already
ingrained in users’ daily life †Google and Facebook are holding strong as the two most popular sites online. According to Compete, the average Google user conducts 5.6 searches per day and
Facebook claims that their users share an average of 60 pieces of content per month. That
means a lot of content gets lost in the social network cloud that Wajam can help users find.
About Wajam – Great Minds Search Alike – www.wajam.com
Wajam is a browser extension that makes searching the web more personal by adding results
from friends to search engine results. Wajam takes content from users’ social networks like
Facebook, Twitter and Delicious and makes this content searchable from Google, Bing, or Yahoo.
Wajam was founded in March 2009 by Martinâ€Luc Archambault, who was previously CEO of
Zango Canada. Wajam is privately held and funded by Bolidea, and is based in Montreal,
Quebec.
About Bolidea – Giving Rise to Stellar Companies – www.bolidea.com
Bolidea is a startup lab and accelerator with the mission of developing technology companies
that provide solutions to real market problems. Bolidea’s Lab is a playground for developing and
testing new ideas to see if they can be turned into stellar companies. In addition to investing in
people that focus on getting things done, Bolidea provides all the resources and mentorship its
startups need to rapidly build their products and test them in the market.
