The Media Lift start-up oneGuide offers content for countless sights around the world, taking every trip to the next level.
The media lift start-up oneGuide offers content for countless sights worldwide, taking every trip to the next level: "More than 80% of global sights and cities worldwide are not digitized and continue to rely on outdated means of communication such as information boards," reveals Wiebke Nadzeika, co-founder of OneGuide in an interview. A problem that she and the OneGuide team know first-hand: "We became aware of this problem during our own travels." Services or apps that counteract this situation have been few and far between or not yet very advanced in terms of quality.
"After a market analysis, we realized that there was no satisfactory solution that combined high-quality content, personalization and user-friendliness. That's why we founded oneGuide - an AI-powered travel app with high-quality audio and AR content," Wiebke continues. "Our goal is to bring cities and cultural attractions to life in an informative and entertaining way, providing travelers with an immersive and engaging experience."
OneGuide achieves this with the help of generative AI: ChatGPT may be all the rage at the moment, but OneGuide relies on many other forms of AI that can generate more than just text: "OneGuide uses natural language processing (NLP), ultra-realistic text-to-voice and text-to-3D modeling technologies as well as computer vision," says Wiebke Nadzeika about the technological basis of OneGuide. "We use a specially trained AI model for our audio and AR content. Initially, our audio and AR content was created by humans and optimized in an A/B test to achieve the best possible content."
For this purpose, OneGuide has built on ChatGPT, but provides the AI model with a custom-built training database. "In addition, our AI model extracts reliable information from data sources selected by us to minimize possible errors," Wiebke continues. "These are our own sources, such as information from tour guides and interviews with contemporary witnesses, as well as external data sources. We have developed a system that automatically integrates relevant information into the prompts. This creates our own traditional OneGuide AI model."
OneGuide allows users to use AI-generated content to connect with the attractions they visit in a variety of ways. From AI-generated visuals to informative audio and text material.
The app is freely available to users, but OneGuide is financed via a freemium model: "Users have access to a free basic version of oneGuide with selected content," says Wiebke about OneGuide's business model. "For full access to all audio and AR tours, they can purchase the full version via in-app purchases."
However, the OneGuide team plans to expand the business model in the future: "We plan to enter into partnerships with tourism organizations, cities and attractions to offer them an innovative service for their visitors and at the same time expand the user base."
As part of Media Lift, OneGuide has access to the nextMedia.Hamburg network as well as a coaching program tailored specifically to them and a team of mentors to help them further develop their product and business model. However, Wiebke Nadzeika also sees a particular advantage in the Hamburg location: "Hamburg offers us a lively start-up scene and great programs and funding opportunities for innovative, young companies. In addition, the proximity to other innovative media and tech companies in Hamburg, combined with the support from Media Lift, strengthens our development and position in the market."
