By Jordan Phelps
The inability to properly express themselves in long-distance collaborative settings for their jobs frustrated David Hart and David (Grue) DeBry. In their previous professions, they felt that if they could draw something and provide a visual representation of what they were trying to say, their points would be conveyed more easily. That is why they created Limnu, an online collaborative whiteboard platform.
“Limnu is a new take on an online whiteboard,” said DeBry. “So what Limnu is, is a great whiteboard tool that’s really better than anything out there because we’re doing it in a different way. And we’re really trying to address the needs that you have when you’re brainstorming in front of a bunch of people standing at a whiteboard which most of the other tools really don’t address at all.”
Limnu integrates chat, audio and video, drawing, and typing capabilities for the benefit of users. The software also uses navigation pins for functionality when working with bigger files. The idea is to provide a platform that the brainstorming process can play out on without getting in the way of it. Limnu uses WebGL, a graphics software that DeBry and Hart utilized in their previous jobs at places including DreamWorks, Disney, and film studios.
There have been 8,000 users of the product since the beta launch in December and around 4,000 of those users have signed up for full accounts, said Hart and DeBry. Approximately 150 people per day are using the product, half being new customers and the other half are returning customers. Limnu is targeting education and start-ups or companies with remote employees that need to collaborate.
“We’re not guessing at this point that there is a need in the market,” said Hart.“People want it. The first bit of evidence is that whiteboards are fairly ubiquitous already. The second bit is that everybody is looking for a replacement for the whiteboard that is online and available because now I’m not always in the room with somebody.”
The team is working out of Holodeck, a co-working space in Salt Lake City, which has helped them to network. Limnu is currently funded by friends and family but they are planning on presenting at LaunchUp in a few weeks to pitch for seed round investors. The platform has already integrated with Slack and Appear.in with futher integrations with Google Drive and others coming soon.
