Pulse2 Technology and Social Media News » Dan Gilbert

Are You A Human Launches PlayThru To Replace CAPTCHA With Games

Amit Chowdhry — Tue, 22 May 2012 13:47:01 +0000

Are You A Human is a Detroit-based startup company that is working on ways to replace CAPTCHA, the security feature on websites where you have to re-write gibberish text to prove that you are a human and not a spammer bot. Are You A Human has just launched a cloud-based game called PlayThru. PlayThru involves playing a mini game to prove that you are a human. For example, you may have to drag food items into a fridge or drag a motorcycle into an empty parking spot. I’d much prefer doing this than filling out text that is often times unreadable.

Companies that use Are You A Human’s products include Quicken Loans and Fathead. About 2 million games have been played to date. The idea for Are You A Human came up when co-founder and CEO Tyler Paxton tried buying Hannah Montana concert tickets, but the seats kept getting taken because filling out the CAPTCHA was taking too long.

Are You A Human launched a prototype in September 2010 and went full-time in April 2011. They received seed funding from Detroit Venture Partners and started testing by the end of November. Currently there are 7 people employed at Are You A Human and they operate out of the M@dison Building incubator space owned by Quicken Loans founder and Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert.

Twitter Opening A Detroit Office In The M@dison Building

Amit Chowdhry — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 18:25:08 +0000

Yahoo! veteran and sales head at Twitter Greg Myrick is spearheading the opening of a Twitter office in Detroit. The Twitter Detroit office will be working closely with automotive companies and local ad agencies. The Twitter Detroit office will be based in the M@dison Building, which is a 100-year old co-working space revamped by Quicken Loans founder and Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert. Gilbert led the talks with Twitter for opening an office there.

The office will have a “handful” of employees working there by the end of the year. The Detroit office follows the opening of Twitter offices in other major cities like Austin, D.C., Cincinnati, Atlanta, Chicago, New York, Tokyo, London, and Dublin. Twitter’s headquarters are in San Francisco.

“Detroit’s emerging mix of automotive and digital cultures made it a natural location for Twitter’s newest office,” stated Twitter president of global revenue Adam Bain. “We’re excited to work face-to-face with the city’s most established brands and happy to play a role in downtown Detroit’s digital renaissance.”

Other offices that are based in the M@dison Building include Detroit Labs, UpTo, Detroit Venture Partners, Are You A Human?, Texts From Last Night, Bizdom, 313 Ventures, and Vineyard Capital.

Quicken Loans Receives Lots Of “Likes” After Pulling Rush Limbaugh Ads

Amit Chowdhry — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 20:03:52 +0000

“If we are going to pay for your contraceptives, and thus pay for you to have sex, we want something for it,” said conservative radio personality Rush Limbaugh in response to Sandra Fluke’s actions. “We want you post the videos online so we can all watch.” When Rush Limbaugh called Georgetown University law student Sandra Fluke “a slut,” a “prostitute,” and a “feminazi” for testifying before a panel of House Democratic Party members on the importance of insurance policies providing free contraceptive coverage, Quicken Loans decided to abandon ad placement on his show.

Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert said this in a tweet: “Due to Rush Limbaugh’s inflammatory comments along w/valuable feedback from our clients & staff, Quicken Loans has suspended ads on his show.” President Barack Obama had called Fluke shortly after Limbaugh’s remarks to commend her willingness to speak out and share her dismay over the slur. Other companies that pulled their ads from Limbaugh’s show include LegalZoom, Sleep Train, and Sleep Number.

Quicken Loans initially resisted pulling their ads. “While we do not condone or agree with Limbaugh’s statements regarding Sandra Fluke, we respect his right to express his views, as well as those who disagree with him,” said Quicken Loans before finally pulling the ads.

After pulling the ads, Quicken Loans received a lot of positive feedback on Facebook. What are your thoughts about Quicken Loans actions? Do you believe they made the right choice? Let us know in the comments.

This Kid Tells LeBron How It Is [VIDEO]

Amit Chowdhry — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 05:24:26 +0000

LeBron James was one of the most liked players in the NBA up until he left the Cleveland Cavaliers for the Miami Heat. Jeremy Lin seems to be wearing the crown for the most liked players nowadays. First it was Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert that bashed on LeBron James and now the latest person to take a shot at King James is a kid on YouTube named Sollomon Gessesse.

Gessesse does not like how the NBA dunk contest has mostly rookies while the all-stars are out partying and clubbing. Gessesse tweeted the video directly to LeBron James’ Twitter account @KingJames. This isn’t the first time that Gessesse bashed on James. Here is a tweet that he sent LeBrown back in October.

[Mashable]

Magic Johnson Joins Detroit Venture Partners to Invest in Detroit Tech Startups

Riley Kennysmith — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 17:27:07 +0000

Detroit Venture Partners has gained a fourth general partner, as NBA star Magic Johnson announced this morning that he is ready to invest in the “Detroit 2.0 movement.” The firm’s founders include Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert, Josh Linkner and Brian Hermelin. Detroit Venture Partners was established in 2010 to invest in tech startups in Detroit, investments that benefit both the tech world and the city of Detroit. [TechCrunch]

Detroit Venture Partners, Ludlow Ventures, and Scott Belsky Invest $1 Million In FLUD

Amit Chowdhry — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 05:19:28 +0000

FLUD is a news reader application available on the iPad and iPhone. The company has raised $1 million from Detroit Venture Partners, Ludlow Ventures, and Behance founder Scott Belsky. Detroit Venture Partners is a VC firm founded by Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert and ePrize founder Josh Linkner.

FLUD launched in August 2010 and founder Bobby Ghoshal said that they will be using the new round of funding to hire additional engineering talent. Ghoshal expects FLUD to be available on Android in the next few weeks. Ghoshal describes FLUD as a social news ecosystem that should not be seen as another RSS based news reader. It has a social component on top of news content. FLUD has hit nearly one million users thus far.

[TechCrunch]

StyleCaster Raises $4 Million In Series A From Dan Gilbert

Amit Chowdhry — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 20:52:13 +0000

StyleCaster is a website that offers style tips, shopping tips, and has a social network. StyleCaster raised $4 million in Series A from Quicken Loans owner Dan Gilbert. Gilbert is a businessman born in Detroit and also founded Rock Financial Corporation. StyleCast said that they plan to use the funding to expand internationally and grow their ad network.

StyleCaster started in February and receives about 200,000 unique visitors per month. StyleCaster will soon be launching a fashion website for men. “StyleCaster has the potential to truly revolutionize the fashion and lifestyle space,” stated StyleCaster CEO and Co-Founder Ari Goldberg. “We are excited to continue our partnership with Dan Gilbert as we build the next generation of intelligent and engaging experiences.”

[via PEHub]