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It’s no secret that Yahoo has been in the shadows cast by Google in not only from the form of an online search engine but as an e-mail client. Recently a rumor came out that Yahoo may offer an application that would act very similar to Google Now. Could this be Yahoo’s way of making some competition against Google in hopes that they can win over past and new users? If this is the case, Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer may have a few tricks up her sleeves that could push the company further than Google.
New rumors based around Yahoo have started to emerge thanks to sources close to Business Insider and according to Business Insider, Yahoo’s CEO Marissa Mayer unveiled information about Index through a conference call. Index will be Yahoo’s answer to mobile virtual personal assistants like Google Now and Apple’s Siri. These assistants have been popping up officially through different handset manufacturers along with third-party developers, so this won’t be anything new or groundbreaking. However, what is the main selling point for Yahoo’s Index is the ability to gather information from Yahoo e-mail accounts that are over twenty years old.
Index may offer features similar to Google Now but it will also apparently be connected and synced to your personal e-mail account information. Yahoo has been offering an e-mail service for over twenty years, giving them a full decade over Google with their Gmail service. Now if you still have those original e-mail accounts, which may be wishful dreaming on Yahoo’s part, consumers can download the application and request the service to search up a topic or phrase. Index will then process the request and search through decades of past e-mails to bring up relevant results.
Furthermore, Index will be able to understand what you’re looking for even if a vague request is given. For instance, let’s say you’ve been e-mailing about your flight into JFK, well by asking for JFK results Index will understand that you’re looking for information regarding your upcoming travel destination and not the former president.
Sources also revealed that Peter Monaco and Jeff Bonforte are the lead executives for Index’s development. Both Monaco and Bonforte came to Yahoo from Xobni, which was software that allowed the ability to organize e-mail inbox’s that Yahoo eventually acquired. Because Yahoo has yet to make any official public announcements on Index, we are unsure of how much information reported through Business Insider is factual. Until that official announcement is made, take this information regarding Index as a grain of salt.