Startup Weekend Oakland — Noted

On the first day of Startup Weekend Oakland, Zach a developer said, “I am just hear to meet some good people and have a fun time and hopefully build some great applications.” As a first time participant he wanted to find out what Startup Weekend was all about.

Half of the Pitch Line

He found more than he bargained for. After an intense night of over 25 pitches, teams were created. Zach joined what would become Noted, searchable handwritten notes. This team was led by Jay Yupin Hu an IOS developer. Over the 54 hours, the team built out a business model, validated their assumptions and created a demonstrable product. The team was also supported by Wayne, Joaqin and Michael.

As can be seen in the demo below, Noted provides optical character recognition of text using available APIs and functionality within the Apple environment. The initial market targeted according to their pitch was students. Through a freemium model they would offer basic functionality for free and additional features at a cost. The focus of their design was user friendliness.

Back to Front: Christopher Ategeka , Kirby Harris , Dr. Tammeil Gilkerson, Regina Escamilla and Greg Hammons

The judges for the event had a highly contentious judging period in ultimately selecting Noted. This was due to a strong showing from a number of teams. In addition, there was substantial input provided by the judges and they commented on the overall inclusiveness of the event.

Zach’s final recommendations to others in his interview was just do it. Attend a hackathon or startup weekend and create something.

Stay #swoak

Demo of Noted

Photographs and Article by:

Jomari Peterson

Oakland Startup Network Ambassador

Founder of Digital Reserve

Come create the change you want to see in 54 hours! 5 Startup Weekends to date, 600+ alumni and growing powered by @techstars @startupweekend @kaporcenter

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