Looksery is an American

software Software is a set of computer programs and associated documentation and data. This is in contrast to hardware, from which the system is built and which actually performs the work. At the lowest programming level, executable code consists ...

and

photography Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is employed ...

company founded in 2013 by Victor Shaburov and Yurii Monastyrshin. The company is based in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

and owned by

Snap Inc. Snap Inc. is an American camera and social media company, founded on September 16, 2011, by Evan Spiegel, Bobby Murphy, and Reggie Brown based in Santa Monica, California. The company developed and maintains technological products and services, ...

The company developed the Looksery application that does facial modification of photos in real time on mobile platforms. The company has offices in

the United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

History

Victor Shaburov founded Looksery company in 2013 in

. Shaburov was sponsoring a programming contest in Ukraine, which Yurii Monastyrshin won twice in succession. Victor offered him to become a co-founder of the startup. In 2014, offices were established in

Odessa, Ukraine Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrative ...

and

Sochi, Russia Sochi ( rus, Со́чи, p=ˈsotɕɪ, a=Ru-Сочи.ogg) is the largest resort city in Russia. The city is situated on the Sochi River, along the Black Sea in Southern Russia, with a population of 466,078 residents, up to 600,000 residents in ...

. Later, the company launched a

Kickstarter Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, ...

campaign in order to raise funds, and exceeded their fundraising goal. In September 2015, Looksery was acquired by

for $150 million, marking the biggest startup acquisition in Ukraine’s history. Snapchat used the Looksery technology to launch a new feature, Lenses.

Application

Before Snapchat's acquisition, Looksery was available as a stand-alone application for

iOS iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also includes ...

and Android. Looksery’s mobile application enabled users to simulate their appearance for a photo or video chat in real-time. Additionally, users could share photos and videos through popular social networks and messengers. When Snapchat launched its product, Lenses, Looksery was withdrawn as a stand-alone product. In June 2014 Looksery launched on crowdfunding site Kickstarter an app that makes you look better on video chat.

Reception

Looksery garnered a lot of media attention. ''

Vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine ** ''Vogue China'', ...

'' selected Looksery as one of the ten Best Apps of 2014 and wrote that "it’s truly addictive and instantly fills you with the childlike energy and creativity of playing make-believe".

TechCrunch TechCrunch is an American online newspaper focusing on high tech and startup companies. It was founded in June 2005 by Archimedes Ventures, led by partners Michael Arrington and Keith Teare. In 2010, AOL acquired the company for approximately ...

called it "a clever application that lets you change your facial features..." and Inc. wrote that " tis an example of technology that may make it easier for camera-shy folks to sit through live video calls or take pictures in the future."

Awards

In 2014, Looksery won the Best Innovative Startup Award at the SVOD annual conference in

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that serves as a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical areas San Mateo County ...

References

{{reflist Social media companies Software companies based in California Software companies established in 2013 Software companies of the United States 2013 establishments in California American companies established in 2013