The iFund, a one hundred million dollar investment initiative set to contribute finances to furthering application development for the iPhone and iPod Touch, has accepted a mere 3 apps out of over 1,700 submissions. Although there are apparently 10 more that are “under consideration,” boasting an acceptance rate of about .17%. Could this mean that the apps chosen are simply mind blowing, or will 99.83% of the new apps just suck?
Thus far only 2 of the 3 apps have been named. The first of which is Whrrl, from Pelago, which essentially ties the mapping capabilities of the iPhone and the ability to find out information for specific areas. For example, finding restaurants, bars, etc.. in close proximity to your location, that friends or family or others have been. It will essentially be a social network for travel information, that uses recommendations from its users. While that sounds ok, I wouldnt go as far as to say that this is a groundbreaking idea.
The second of the 2 named apps is called iControl, which promises to turn your iPhone into a universal remote control for seemingly everything in your house, seems to be a far more promising idea. Everything from air conditioners to window shades will have the ability to be controlled from this super-remote, simplifying iPhone users control of their surroundings. 9 To 5 Mac released a poll in which “21 per cent of 2,286 people who voted in that poll expressed a preferences for iPhone-controlled home automation systems, with an additional 6 per cent stating an interest in a universal remote.”
While Whrrl provides users with some decent geo-specific information, I certainly wouldn’t deem it as useful and handy as iControl. Yet for these two applications to be at the top of the heap, what does that bode for the rest of the pack? I would have thought that by now we would have been seeing in influx of promising applications, but I guess we will just have to hope for the best.
So why of all of the applicants have these two companies been pushed to the top of the pile? Well, interestingly enough, Macenstein reports that both companies have deep rooted ties to Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB), the group overseeing the fund, iControl even touting a KPCB partner on its board. Well, for a true scandal to be apparent, it would only seem fitting for KPCB to not only fast track their affiliates but also reject other applicants to give their interests a head start. We’ll just have to see how this one plays out, as we could be in for some pretty interesting forth comings.
