TLabs focus on startups featuring FlightCaster from SanFrancisco.
FlightCaster predicts flight delays hours before the airlines. We use advanced algorithms that mine flight data and provide real-time information to travellers and agencies about the delay potential for any U.S. flight.
Founders: Evan Konwiser, Jason Freedman, and Brad Cross. The idea was generated by Evan Konwiser, a former airline consultant who spent years of his life commuting up and down the east coast in horrific delays. He teamed with Jason Freedman, an experienced entrepreneur and MBA classmate, to bring it to life. They found Brad Cross to execute on the advanced algorithms. Brad, who spent time at Google and has also written software for hedge funds predicting trades, is an expert at machine learning in the cloud, the core of FlightCaster’s infrastructure.
What financial support did you have to launch the business?
We launched in spring of 2009 with our savings and then received our initial seed funding from Y Combinator, the Mountain View, CA incubator led by guru Paul Graham. Following that program in fall of 2009, we took a Series A investment from Tandem Entrepreneurs (San Mateo, CA) and Sherpalo Ventures (Menlo Park, CA), along with a couple of angels.
What problem are you trying to solve?
Everyone is well aware of the problems associated with delayed flights. The problem FlightCaster attacks is that the data associated with those delays is often late as well. Over 75% of the time, airlines first report a significant delay 30 minutes or less before the scheduled departure.
That means that a vast majority of the time when your flight is delayed, you don’t hear about it until you’re at the gate, or even worse, already on the plane. By then, it’s too late for you to do anything about it - you’re essentially stuck.
FlightCaster helps travellers and agencies by moving up when that data is available. If a delay is known four or six hours before a flight, now there are multiples of alternative flights available and time to adjust schedules accordingly.
Describe the business, core products and services?
The current offering is data showing the probability that any US domestic flight will be on-time, less than 60 minutes late, or more than 60 minutes late. This data is available up to 6 hours before scheduled departure on our BlackBerry app, iPhone app, web-site (http://flightcaster.com), or Developer CenterAPI (http://flightcaster.com/developer).
We also provide the “delay factors”, or reasons why that flight will be delayed. This includes inbound flight information, weather, and FAA airport status data. We have an API that provides this data to partners for integration into their products.
Coming soon are expansions to the data that will allow predictions up to 24 hours before the flight, as well as separating departure and arrival delays and generating time ranges in addition to probabilities. We’re also working on a push notification and an intelligent alternate flight recommendation engine,
Finally, we’re currently in early stages of working with agencies to create travel management products around our data. This will provide an opportunity for true proactive customer servicing and efficiency gains in how agencies handle requests for customers with disrupted travel.
Who are your key customers and users at launch?
At launch in fall 2009, our customers were our app and web users: savvy travellers who wanted better information about their flight. However, at our core we are a data company, not an app company. Since the release of our API in beta, we have expanded our user base to developers, big and small (http://api.flightcaster.com).
We are currently in the final stages of selecting a handful of key development partners to implement our data for their travellers so we can work closely with customers in creating the ideal solution set.
Later on, we hope to sell to airlines directly, both as a customer service tool and operations tool. However we are focusing on consumer tools and agencies first.
Did you have customers validate your idea before investors?
Absolutely! Our users provide us the best feedback. We have an active customer feedback forum on our website and we communicate regularly with our users through Twitter (@FlightCaster) and email.
Some of our best product features have come from simply flying on planes and asking people around us for feedback. By the time we met with investors, we knew that our customers had a powerful need that our product could solve.
What is the business AND revenue model, strategy for profitability?
Our proprietary data is the only source for flight data besides the airlines (directly or via 3rd party flight data providers), and airlines are notoriously bad at providing timely information.
Our two customer groups are itinerary managers and agencies. The value proposition is different for those groups since their revenue models are quite different. For both groups we charge for access to our data depending on the volume of itineraries and usage of the data. For custom solutions that involve creating new revenue opportunities, we will often work out a revenue-share agreement.
By implementing FlightCaster data into their applications, itinerary managers can improve the ability of their product to be relevant during travel. Currently, most mobile itinerary managers are convenient because they store travel information and push out airline alerts in a timely manner.
Our data makes these alerts much more powerful because they give the traveller real options for avoiding delays. When notified of a delay by a FlightCaster-powered product, travellers can use our intelligent alternative flight recommendation engine to book a new flight or they can grab a standby seat on another flight or simply inform their colleagues that they’ll be delayed.
For the frequent traveller, knowledge is power. FlightCaster-powered products provide more than just convenience - they provide actionable intelligence.
For agencies, FlightCaster data can transform their operations with deep integration into their customer value proposition. Predictive flight notifications, powered by FlightCaster, enable the corporate travel agency to contact high-value customers proactively to warn them of impending delays.
For the premium traveller who pays for top-notch service, our data means they’re a few hours ahead of anyone relying on standard airline info alone. Going far beyond our API, we’re working with partners to fully integrate our data stream into their service-center work streams— allowing our data to not only provide better service, but also efficiency gains in when and how they interact with disrupted travellers.
SWOT analysis – strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats?
Strengths:
Our technology -- We have built a machine learning architecture in the cloud that is world-class. By positioning ourselves at the cutting edge of technology, we can confidently go to any partner or customer with a proprietary solution that is very difficult to duplicate. We process hundreds of millions real-time data inputs from many sources, using cloud-computing to power a set of algorithms that ultimately produce a delay prediction.
Our team -- We’re travel geeks and data geeks. Not only do we use FlightCaster when we travel, we also spend our free time obsessing over travel delays. We share our analysis on delays an the industry on our blog at http://blog.flightcaster.com
Weaknesses:
We are a start-up in travel technology, and that is a hard place to be as many of you have experienced first-hand. Sure we can move fast and expeditiously, but we rely on partnerships and collaboration for success.
Additionally, the day-of-travel market is still nascent. Most attention is still paid to the travel planning market. We think day-of-travel is quickly becoming the next big thing in the industry, propelled by smart phone adoption and powerful real-time technology.
Opportunities:
The real opportunity is in the data itself. There’s so much data accessible now that doing sophisticated analysis in real-time can yield powerful outcomes for everyone in the industry.
Even five years ago, this data wasn’t available to a start-up like us. Just as importantly, advancements in cloud computing in the last 18 months have made it possible to run world-class machine learning without an upfront capital expenditure.
We want to change how travellers and agencies consume flight delay information. The opportunity is to push the whole industry towards doing a better job of managing flight delays. It’s all about creating a better flying experience for the traveller – that’s why we exist.
Threats:
The biggest threat to our existing product line is that airlines get really good at providing accurate, timely information to travellers. And if that day ever comes, we’ll all be thrilled!
Who advised you your idea isn't going to be successful and why didn't you listen to them?
Some venture capital firms we talked to, and some industry folks.
For VCs, it all depended on where they lived and worked. Many west-coast folks stared at us when we talked about how flight delays are the single most disruptive part of any business travellers’ life. East-coast folks immediately got it and wanted to know more!
For industry folks, there is a general feeling that travel tech is a hard place to play and win.
We didn’t listen because we feel the technology is the difference-maker. We’re trying to do something new and we’re playing in a totally different space than all the travel-planning tools out there.
Also, we feel there is a trend towards more day-of-travel tools that create real value for travellers. Change is happening in air travel and we feel we’re poised to take advantage.
What is your success metric 12 months from now?
The number of travellers who are using our data, or whose agency is using our data, to make their flying experience better.
The more distribution we can get, the better. Our core market is business and frequent travellers, but we fundamentally believe that every traveller has a right to know what factors are likely to make their flight late:
No more boarding planes without knowing when you’re going to take-off.
No more rushing to the airport to find out your inbound aircraft is an hour late.
No more being at the mercy of the airline to distribute slow, inaccurate data.
The higher number of travellers we can help move beyond those common issues, the more success we will have achieved.
And if, along the way, we can get the attention and the willingness to collaborate from airlines, all the better for us and the flying public.
Who and what are you (including personnel and backgrounds)?FlightCaster predicts flight delays hours before the airlines. We use advanced algorithms that mine flight data and provide real-time information to travellers and agencies about the delay potential for any U.S. flight.
Founders: Evan Konwiser, Jason Freedman, and Brad Cross. The idea was generated by Evan Konwiser, a former airline consultant who spent years of his life commuting up and down the east coast in horrific delays. He teamed with Jason Freedman, an experienced entrepreneur and MBA classmate, to bring it to life. They found Brad Cross to execute on the advanced algorithms. Brad, who spent time at Google and has also written software for hedge funds predicting trades, is an expert at machine learning in the cloud, the core of FlightCaster’s infrastructure.
What financial support did you have to launch the business?
We launched in spring of 2009 with our savings and then received our initial seed funding from Y Combinator, the Mountain View, CA incubator led by guru Paul Graham. Following that program in fall of 2009, we took a Series A investment from Tandem Entrepreneurs (San Mateo, CA) and Sherpalo Ventures (Menlo Park, CA), along with a couple of angels.
What problem are you trying to solve?
Everyone is well aware of the problems associated with delayed flights. The problem FlightCaster attacks is that the data associated with those delays is often late as well. Over 75% of the time, airlines first report a significant delay 30 minutes or less before the scheduled departure.
That means that a vast majority of the time when your flight is delayed, you don’t hear about it until you’re at the gate, or even worse, already on the plane. By then, it’s too late for you to do anything about it - you’re essentially stuck.
FlightCaster helps travellers and agencies by moving up when that data is available. If a delay is known four or six hours before a flight, now there are multiples of alternative flights available and time to adjust schedules accordingly.
Describe the business, core products and services?
The current offering is data showing the probability that any US domestic flight will be on-time, less than 60 minutes late, or more than 60 minutes late. This data is available up to six hours before scheduled departure on our BlackBerry app, iPhone app, website or Developer Center API.
We also provide the “delay factors”, or reasons why that flight will be delayed. This includes inbound flight information, weather, and FAA airport status data. We have an API that provides this data to partners for integration into their products.
Coming soon are expansions to the data that will allow predictions up to 24 hours before the flight, as well as separating departure and arrival delays and generating time ranges in addition to probabilities. We’re also working on a push notification and an intelligent alternate flight recommendation engine,
Finally, we’re currently in early stages of working with agencies to create travel management products around our data. This will provide an opportunity for true proactive customer servicing and efficiency gains in how agencies handle requests for customers with disrupted travel.
Who are your key customers and users at launch?
At launch in fall 2009, our customers were our app and web users: savvy travellers who wanted better information about their flight. However, at our core we are a data company, not an app company. Since the release of our API in beta, we have expanded our user base to developers, big and small.
We are currently in the final stages of selecting a handful of key development partners to implement our data for their travellers so we can work closely with customers in creating the ideal solution set.
Later on, we hope to sell to airlines directly, both as a customer service tool and operations tool. However we are focusing on consumer tools and agencies first.
Did you have customers validate your idea before investors?
Absolutely! Our users provide us the best feedback. We have an active customer feedback forum on our website and we communicate regularly with our users through a Twitter profile and email.
Some of our best product features have come from simply flying on planes and asking people around us for feedback. By the time we met with investors, we knew that our customers had a powerful need that our product could solve.
What is the business AND revenue model, strategy for profitability?
Our proprietary data is the only source for flight data besides the airlines (directly or via 3rd party flight data providers), and airlines are notoriously bad at providing timely information.
Our two customer groups are itinerary managers and agencies. The value proposition is different for those groups since their revenue models are quite different. For both groups we charge for access to our data depending on the volume of itineraries and usage of the data. For custom solutions that involve creating new revenue opportunities, we will often work out a revenue-share agreement.
By implementing FlightCaster data into their applications, itinerary managers can improve the ability of their product to be relevant during travel. Currently, most mobile itinerary managers are convenient because they store travel information and push out airline alerts in a timely manner.
Our data makes these alerts much more powerful because they give the traveller real options for avoiding delays. When notified of a delay by a FlightCaster-powered product, travellers can use our intelligent alternative flight recommendation engine to book a new flight or they can grab a standby seat on another flight or simply inform their colleagues that they’ll be delayed.
For the frequent traveller, knowledge is power. FlightCaster-powered products provide more than just convenience - they provide actionable intelligence.
For agencies, FlightCaster data can transform their operations with deep integration into their customer value proposition. Predictive flight notifications, powered by FlightCaster, enable the corporate travel agency to contact high-value customers proactively to warn them of impending delays.
For the premium traveller who pays for top-notch service, our data means they’re a few hours ahead of anyone relying on standard airline info alone. Going far beyond our API, we’re working with partners to fully integrate our data stream into their service-center work streams— allowing our data to not only provide better service, but also efficiency gains in when and how they interact with disrupted travellers.
SWOT analysis – strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats?
Strengths:
- Our technology -- We have built a machine learning architecture in the cloud that is world-class. By positioning ourselves at the cutting edge of technology, we can confidently go to any partner or customer with a proprietary solution that is very difficult to duplicate. We process hundreds of millions real-time data inputs from many sources, using cloud-computing to power a set of algorithms that ultimately produce a delay prediction.
- Our team -- We’re travel geeks and data geeks. Not only do we use FlightCaster when we travel, we also spend our free time obsessing over travel delays. We share our analysis on delays an the industry on our blog.
Weaknesses:
- We are a start-up in travel technology, and that is a hard place to be as many of you have experienced first-hand. Sure we can move fast and expeditiously, but we rely on partnerships and collaboration for success. Additionally, the day-of-travel market is still nascent. Most attention is still paid to the travel planning market. We think day-of-travel is quickly becoming the next big thing in the industry, propelled by smart phone adoption and powerful real-time technology.
Opportunities:
- The real opportunity is in the data itself. There’s so much data accessible now that doing sophisticated analysis in real-time can yield powerful outcomes for everyone in the industry. Even five years ago, this data wasn’t available to a start-up like us. Just as importantly, advancements in cloud computing in the last 18 months have made it possible to run world-class machine learning without an upfront capital expenditure. We want to change how travellers and agencies consume flight delay information. The opportunity is to push the whole industry towards doing a better job of managing flight delays. It’s all about creating a better flying experience for the traveller – that’s why we exist.
Threats:
- The biggest threat to our existing product line is that airlines get really good at providing accurate, timely information to travellers. And if that day ever comes, we’ll all be thrilled!
Who advised you your idea isn't going to be successful and why didn't you listen to them?Some venture capital firms we talked to, and some industry folks.
For VCs, it all depended on where they lived and worked. Many west-coast folks stared at us when we talked about how flight delays are the single most disruptive part of any business travellers’ life. East-coast folks immediately got it and wanted to know more!
For industry folks, there is a general feeling that travel tech is a hard place to play and win.
We didn’t listen because we feel the technology is the difference-maker. We’re trying to do something new and we’re playing in a totally different space than all the travel-planning tools out there.
Also, we feel there is a trend towards more day-of-travel tools that create real value for travellers. Change is happening in air travel and we feel we’re poised to take advantage.
What is your success metric 12 months from now?
The number of travellers who are using our data, or whose agency is using our data, to make their flying experience better.
The more distribution we can get, the better. Our core market is business and frequent travellers, but we fundamentally believe that every traveller has a right to know what factors are likely to make their flight late:
- No more boarding planes without knowing when you’re going to take-off.
- No more rushing to the airport to find out your inbound aircraft is an hour late.
- No more being at the mercy of the airline to distribute slow, inaccurate data.
The higher number of travellers we can help move beyond those common issues, the more success we will have achieved.
And if, along the way, we can get the attention and the willingness to collaborate from airlines, all the better for us and the flying public.
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