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Kagi raises $670k

blog.kagi.com

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Re: Kagi raises $670k

#71

Post by gman83 »

samwillis wrote: post #51
gman83 wrote: post #39

I find the data on their pricing interesting. It says 300 searches per month is enough for 99% of users. I'm pretty sure I use more than 300 searches every day. Edit: 300/day is too much, apparently I use about 100/day according to my search history.

That would be one search every 3 min, if you sleep 8hrs a day...

Yeah I just checked my search history, I did 100 searches yesterday. That's probably more like what I do on an average day. That's roughly 10 searches per hour, doesn't seem unreasonable to me.

Re: Kagi raises $670k

#73

Post by mrweasel »

gman83 wrote: post #39

I find the data on their pricing interesting. It says 300 searches per month is enough for 99% of users. I'm pretty sure I use more than 300 searches every day. Edit: 300/day is too much, apparently I use about 100/day according to my search history.

I'm sure they're right, my dad doesn't need 300 search per month. What I question is whether or not 300 search is sufficient for their average user.

The person who is willing to pay for a search engine is also going to be a person care more about search and use it more. My best guess is that 1000 searches per month is right on the edge of what their average user can get by with. It's fair enough, they do need to make money, and I have no problems believe that 300 is about right for the average internet user. It just gives a false impression of your expected cost as a potential customer.

Re: Kagi raises $670k

#74

Post by comfypotato »

sph wrote: post #62
pixeladed wrote: post #53

Neeva - cofounded by an ex-Google exec also provided a paid search experience with similar features. They have since shut down and in their blog post pointed out that the issue they faced was not convincing people that they should pay for search but rather the fact that distribution of their service is difficult (i.e. being browser defaults, at work, on people's phones). What's Kagi doing differently to be able to su…

They reach the top of HN front page. Because I've never heard of Neeva before, but I'm a Kagi paying user.

It’s hot and new, but this is still a valid question. Neeva shows up, not Kagi, when you query Google about paid search engines.

Re: Kagi raises $670k

#75

Post by throwaway2037 » 

    Kagi has successfully raised $670K in a SAFE note investment round, marking our first external fundraise to date. This was made possible with the participation of 42 accredited investors, most of whom are actual Kagi users.
That is a dense paragraph.

1) What is a "SAFE note"? Google tells me:

    A "Simple Agreement for Future Equity" note is a way that startups can raise capital. The SAFE note is a legally binding agreement that allows an investor to buy a specific number of shares for an agreed-upon price at some point in the future, usually when the startup has a subsequent funding round.
2) What are "accredited investors"? Let's assume US.

SEC tells me: https://www.sec.gov/education/capitalraising/building-blocks...

    Net worth over $1 million, excluding primary residence (individually or with spouse or partner)
Or:

    Income over $200,000 (individually) or $300,000 (with spouse or partner) in each of the prior two years, and reasonably expects the same for the current year

Re: Kagi raises $670k

#76

Post by leokennis »

pixeladed wrote: post #53

Neeva - cofounded by an ex-Google exec also provided a paid search experience with similar features. They have since shut down and in their blog post pointed out that the issue they faced was not convincing people that they should pay for search but rather the fact that distribution of their service is difficult (i.e. being browser defaults, at work, on people's phones). What's Kagi doing differently to be able to su…

At least for iOS/Mac but 99.999% sure for other browsers as well, they could write an extension that rewrites "https://www.google.com/search?q=some%20search" into their own search url right? Then keep Google as default search engine. Installing an extension sounds like a hurdle people paying for search are willing and able to jump over.

Re: Kagi raises $670k

#77

Post by asaddhamani »

gman83 wrote: post #39

I find the data on their pricing interesting. It says 300 searches per month is enough for 99% of users. I'm pretty sure I use more than 300 searches every day. Edit: 300/day is too much, apparently I use about 100/day according to my search history.

The pricing was interesting to me too. If the average user searches 3-4 times a day, most programmers are definitely outside that average. And I think programmers and other techies are the ones most likely to care enough about online privacy and search engine personalisation to pay for this. I myself seem to average around 40 searches per day, so I'd end up paying $18 per month.

Re: Kagi raises $670k

#78

Post by weikju »

sph wrote: post #67
hans0l074 wrote: post #59

How do you pronounce this? Is it a soft ? Whenever I see Kagi on HN I smile, because my daughter has a soft toy (a sea horse) that she has named Kagi (she pronounces it kha-gee, with a hard g). Good luck!

I pronounce it like her, which is unfortunate because in Italian "KA-ghee" (written caghi ) is the verb "you shit".

I also pronounce it with a hard g, same as "kagi" the Japanese word for "key"

Re: Kagi raises $670k

#79

Post by throwaway290 »

Sakos wrote: post #63
throwaway290 wrote: post #36

> business model Welp. Until now their search and their browser were supported by me and people like me, but now they are supported by investors who will want ROI. As history shows, the best way to get ROI is to become free and mine user data. Congrats to the team on paycheck though!

The funding is from investors who are Kagi users. You could sign up to be a part of their next funding round if you want.

even if they were all users (they aren't), it's relevant how exactly? If Saudis who are 2nd biggest Twitter investors use Twitter it doesn't make its business model better.

Re: Kagi raises $670k

#80

Post by imiric »

sph wrote: post #62
pixeladed wrote: post #53

Neeva - cofounded by an ex-Google exec also provided a paid search experience with similar features. They have since shut down and in their blog post pointed out that the issue they faced was not convincing people that they should pay for search but rather the fact that distribution of their service is difficult (i.e. being browser defaults, at work, on people's phones). What's Kagi doing differently to be able to su…

They reach the top of HN front page. Because I've never heard of Neeva before, but I'm a Kagi paying user.

That's hardly a relevant criteria. HN consists of a niche audience of technical users already interested in startups and search technology. The real criteria is whether Kagi will be able to scale beyond a niche market, and establish a sustainable mainstream business. OP's question is valid, but it can't be answered by outsider speculation. Hopefully someone from Kagi is able to address it.

This investment is a good sign, though. I'm rooting for them. We need more competition in this space, and a proper business not hijacked by advertisers is always a good thing.

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