The platform combines social media-like knowledge sharing with mapping and location discovery tools to create a more precise search experience.
Atly, a user-generated social mapping platform, has announced its official launch along with $18 million in funding from Target Global, Tal Ventures, and FKA Brands.
Formerly known as Steps, the platform aims to enhance location-based discovery by combining social media-like knowledge sharing with mapping and location tools, providing users with a more fine-tuned search experience.
Traditional search engines are being supplemented by various resources as people seek authentic and personalized recommendations for their next moves. Rather than relying solely on Google Search or Google Maps, individuals increasingly turn to social media platforms such as TikTok and Facebook. However, these platforms were not designed specifically for location-based discovery, resulting in users sifting through endless streams of content and facing limited search and filtering capabilities.
Moreover, creators and businesses struggle to monetize their content effectively.
The Tel Aviv and New York-based startup plans to address these challenges by leveraging user-generated knowledge and combining it with mapping and location discovery tools. The platform allows users to create and join map-based communities centered around their interests. By tapping into previously unmapped content and surfacing authentic recommendations from like-minded individuals, Atly ensures that users can trust the integrity and specificity of every suggestion they discover. This approach provides users with the confidence that they will enjoy the places they visit while offering creators and businesses higher conversion rates.
In its open beta to date, Atly recorded thousands of user-created community-based maps, with hundreds of new maps generated organically each month across verticals like food and restaurants, travel, nature and the outdoors, parenting, and more.
The funding secured by Atly will be utilized to enhance the platform’s algorithms, performance, and overall user experience. Additionally, it will enable the release of anticipated product features and updates, as well as foster collaborations with more creators.
Uriel Maslansky, CEO and Co-Founder of Atly, highlighted the intersection between community and information on social media platforms and identified the need for a location-based information solution. By combining user-generated content, visual mapping, hyper-specific discovery tools, and engaging content, Atly aims to make it easy for users to uncover their next favorite place to visit or activity to engage in.
“It makes no sense. We search for things like ‘cafe’ or ‘restaurant,’ when in reality, these are simply proxies for the things we are actually searching for, whether that’s a place that serves cold brew or some mouth-watering French toast. And when we finally find a place, the rating and reviews are unreliable. Is the cafe rated 3.5/5 because of the coffee? The atmosphere? Weak Wi-Fi? Talk about a mediocre search experience,” said Joshua Kaufman, Atly Co-Founder.
Joshua emphasised the platform’s mission to enhance mapping by allowing users to search for specific items or experiences instead of generic terms. He said organic growth of Atly’s user base further validates the demand for such a solution.
Investors such as Tal Ventures expressed their support for Atly’s vision, recognizing its potential to revolutionize the mapping ecosystem and fulfill the growing market demand for reliable and seamless location-based search experiences.
Atly is available for free download on the App Store and Google Play Store.
