YAC app: like Tinder that works indoors and not just for dating
Aleš Živkovič had gone from trying to fix Slovenian healthcare system to being an entrepreneur in London — probably equally hard (for different reasons), but certainly a more lucrative business.
After co-founding a high quality broadcaster dedicated to medical research, Živkovič eventually sold his stake and went on to pursue a career as a psychotherapist (he has his own practice in London where he deals with overstressed and burnt-out entrepreneurs) while also working on an application for “connecting people”.
What is YAC
YAC (or Your Actual Contact) is according to Živkovič and his brother Alen (who is a cofounder and director of the company) an app that promotes networking with people who are in close proximity to each other, i.e. in the same room, concert, subway, conference …
The app uses both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to scan the surroundings for other users. If or when they show up, you are able to connect with them, write or give them a like. The creators, however, like to point out that the whole idea behind YAC is based on a premise that you will eventually go and talk with the person in real life as well. “We want to bring back the real-life contact among people that the Internet has taken away from us,” said Alen Živkovič.
The whole thing probably would not work without a proper filtering mechanism. And while Tinder has “swipe” manoeuvre, YAC adopted a subtler way of telling people wheatear they are wanted or not — a so called Personal Influence Score. Basically, it is an algorithm that tracks a user’s social engagement with other people (for instance, the number of likes a user collects), and computes them in a personal social rating.
“It is what people use it for”
YAC could become a useful tool for more efficient business networking, but it probably has even more potential as a dating app — even though Živkovič brothers are trying to distance themselves from labelling an app in such a way. “Users are free to use the app as they think will bring them the most value. If it is for dating, so be it,” said Živkovič.
They still have a long way to go in terms of commercialization and gaining traction. The app will see its first commercial launch this summer in a few chosen beach clubs on a Croatian islands of Hvar and Pag. “We have already made a promotion during spring break weekend together with a Papaya club on Pag island,” said the Slovenian entrepreneur. If all goes well, big European and U.S. cities are next. Živkovič is aware that extra funding will be necessary for a global expansion, but says they are not looking for an investment at the moment.
YAC is free to use and currently only available for iOS users — the team expects to roll out an Android version as well; however, it is not known when. Regarding the business model, Živkovič explains that they are still working on it, but are considering several scenarios, including solutions for B2B.
A look into the past
Practically every conceivable idea that could be manifested as an app has already been utilized in a smartphone. The same, of course, goes for dating.
Already in 2005, Nokia developed a version of a communication technology that detected users in vicinity of the device. The app called Sensor used Bluetooth technology which at the time only detected mobile phones located within a radius of ten meters. In comparison, the maximum range of the latest version of Bluetooth (5.0) is 240 meters.
An even an earlier attempt comes from Japan. A company Erfolg has developed a physical device in 1998 which allowed users to find potential nearby dates that matched their preferences. According to Wikipedia over 1.3 million of these units were sold in Japan.
