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Title: The Foursquare founder's new app is an AI-powered 'DJ' for
neighborhood updates

Link: https://www.engadget.com/apps/the-foursquare-...

Foursquare founder Dennis Crowley has unveiled his latest venture and yes,
it's another location-based social app. But, rather than the check-ins
Crowley first popularized more than 15 years ago, "BeeBot" has a very 2025
take on the concept. Instead, the app is an AI-powered "DJ" that can deliver
contextual audio updates to your ears as you move through your day.

Crowley describes BeeBot as an "app for AirPods," though it will work with
any type of headphones, as well as smart glasses with audio capabilities like
Meta's. "Whenever you put your AirPods in, it turns on," Crowley explains in
a post on Medium. "Whenever you take your AirPods out it turns off. And when
itΓÇÖs 'on' itΓÇÖll push you snippets of audio about the people, places, and
events that are nearby.'

To do this, you'll need to give the app access to your location and share a
handful of "keywords" about your interests. You can also share your contacts
to get updates from friends who are using the app. The BeeBot "DJ," which of
course has an AI voice, will then be able to talk to you as you throughout
the dat and alert you to interesting events, landmarks or updates from
friends who happen to be nearby.

In some ways, it sounds like Crowley is trying to re-create some of the
serendipitous IRL social interactions enabled by the original version of
Foursquare. BeeBot doesn't have "mayorships," badges or any of the
gamification features that helped popularize FourSquare, but it's meant to
have some of the "same playful spirit," of OG Foursquare, according to
Crowley. (Foursquare shut down its city guide app of the same name earlier
this year, though its check-in app, Swarm, lives on.)

And, because it's 2025, there's also a whole bunch of AI thrown in, including
"a mix of different LLMs" and "synthetic voices." The app is "powered by a
TikTok-style algorithm," Crowley says, "but one thatΓÇÖs focused on whatΓÇÖs
happening nearby and IRL."

There also seems to be a bit of DNA from Marsbot, the short-lived (and IMO
very underrated) chat-based app Foursquare launched in 2016 that could
proactively provide personalized restaurant recommendations. While BeeBot
isn't as heavily focused on neighborhood recommendations as Foursquare, it is
meant to proactively let you know about nearby happenings you might be
interested in or even a bit of gossip from friends. In addition to friends'
status updates, the app will draw on local Substacks and newsletters for
relevant info about a given area.

Crowley says the DJ's audio cues may "occasionally" interrupt your music or
podcast to give an update, though users should expect to hear these only a
couple times throughout the day. BeeBot won't interrupt voice or video calls.


BeeBot, which is the inaugural project of Crowley's new company Hopscotch
Labs, is out now in the App Store, though it's still "very much a work in
progress," according to Crowley. "I feel like the version of the product
weΓÇÖre sharing with folks today is kind of where Foursquare was when it
launched at SXSW in 2009 ΓÇô an interesting vision, a good-enough execution,
but something that still needs to be shaped by the people using it to fully
blossom."

This article originally appeared on Engadget at
https://www.engadget.com/apps/the-foursquare-...
powered-dj-for-neighborhood-updates-202326296.html?src=rss

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