About Umano
Umano is a Media & Entertainment company based in San Francisco (United States) founded in 2012, and was acquired by Dropbox in May 2015. It operates as a curated news articles are read aloud through a mobile app. Umano has raised $1 million across 1 funding round from investors including Dropbox, Digital Garage and Birchmere Ventures. The company was acqui-hired. Its focus areas include Internet First Media, News Portals, Aggregators and Audio. Its competitors include Curio, Khabri, Audiolaby, Robot Start and Listen to News and 2 more; 6 of its 7 listed competitors have raised funding.
Company details
Umano was founded in 2012 in San Francisco, United States, within the mobile media sector. A mobile app was developed to deliver curated news and articles, with content selected by the platform and narrated by professional readers. From 2014, authors were enabled to produce and voice their own audio content. The company was acquired by Dropbox in May 2015, after which the service was discontinued in June 2015.
Funding Insights of Umano
Umano has successfully raised a total of $1M through 1 strategic funding round. The most recent funding activity was a Seed round of $1 million completed in July 2013. This substantial capital infusion reflects strong investor confidence in the company's business model, growth potential, and market opportunities. The funding enables strategic expansion, product development, market penetration, and operational scaling to drive long-term value creation and competitive advantage.
- Total Funding $1M
- Total Rounds 1
- Last Round Seed — $1M
- First Round $1M
(Jul 2013)
- Investors Count 2
All 1 funding rounds of Umano with amounts and investors; the two latest post-money valuations are shown, the rest are part of the premium plan.
| Date | Amount | Transaction Name | Valuation | Lead Investors | Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 2013 | $1M | Seed | – | – |
3 investors in total: 3 institutional.
Investors in Umano
Umano has secured backing from 3 investors, including venture fund and institutional investors. Prominent investors backing the company include Dropbox, Digital Garage and Birchmere Ventures.
| Investor | Description | Founded Year | Domain | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
US focused early-stage VC firm investing in tech & life sciences start-ups | – | birchmerevc.com | Pittsburgh, United States | |
Marketing services with digital solutions for real estate are provided. | 1995 | garage.co.jp | Tokyo, Japan | |
Cloud-based file sharing and collaboration tools are offered for enterprises. | 2007 | dropbox.com | San Francisco, United States |
Investor details for Umano
The complete investor list, round-by-round participation and investor portfolios require an active premium plan.
- Complete investor list
- Round participation
- Investor portfolios
- Co-investor network
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Timeline of Umano
3 dated milestones of Umano across 3 years, from founding to its latest funding, stage changes and deals.
- Founded Umano is founded.
- Funding First funding round of $1.0M.
- Exit Acquired by Dropbox.
Competitors of Umano
Umano has 7 listed competitors in our database, 6 of them funded. They include Curio, Khabri, Audiolaby, Robot Start and Listen to News, among others.
| Company Name | Domain | Founded | HQ Location | Total funding | Employees | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| curio.io | 2016 | London, United Kingdom | $8.96M | 13 | Curated multi-category news is provided through an online platform. | |
| khabri.app | 2016 | Delhi, India | $2.25M | – | Curated audio news is delivered via an Android app. | |
| audiolaby.com | 2014 | Esenyurt, Turkey | – | – | Produces and records audio versions of articles. | |
| robotstart.co.jp | 2014 | Tokyo, Japan | $908,801 | – | Solutions for the robotics industry are designed and developed. | |
| listentonews.dk | 2014 | Copenhagen, Denmark | $1.02M | 1 | Web application for listening to short news podcasts | |
| aurality.net | 2011 | Mumbai, India | $300,000 | – | Functions as an application for converting text into audio formats. | |
| listle.io | 2019 | Mountain View, United States | $150,000 | – | Digital site offering health insights, news, and user experiences online. |
Detailed competitors of Umano
The full competitor set, operating metrics and side-by-side benchmarks require an active premium plan.
- Full competitor set
- Operating metrics
- Benchmarks
- Competitive positioning
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Web traffic of Umano
Websites that share an audience with Umano (umano.me).
Websites whose visitors overlap most with Umano. Affinity shows how closely the audiences match.
| Website | Domain | Audience affinity | Monthly visits | Global rank | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| umanoapp.com | 100% | – | – | View details | |
| dayoneapp.com | 72% | 492.8K | #115,703 | View details | |
clippersync.com | clippersync.com | 44% | – | – | – |
| kairoswatches.com | 43% | – | #1,938,534 | View details |
Top companies in DTC Media Innovators
10 companies that operate in the same segment as Umano (DTC Media Innovators), ranked by their profile score on The Company Check.
| Company | Description | Founded | Location | Total funding | Revenue | Employees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Diversified gaming and sports media platforms are operated and developed. | 1999 | Mumbai, Maharashtra, India | USD 127.93 M | USD 194.94 M | 63 | |
News media platform for soccer | 2008 | Berlin, Berlin, Germany | USD 320.1 M | USD 30.07 M | 298 | |
Multi-category news is delivered through an app-based platform. | 2016 | Arlington, Virginia, United States | USD 30 M | – | 356 | |
News media platform covering combat sports | 2011 | Singapore, Singapore | USD 236 M | USD 84.46 M | 657 | |
Multi-category news is curated and delivered in multiple languages. | 2009 | Bengaluru, Karnataka, India | USD 129.01 M | – | 942 | |
Hyperlocal short news app is provided in multiple languages. | 2014 | Hyderabad, Telangana, India | USD 30.77 M | USD 5.35 M | 309 | |
Online platform publishing content focusing on investment | 2011 | Chicago, Illinois, United States | USD 60.4 M | – | – | |
Subscription-based sports media is delivered to local premium audiences. | 2016 | Chicago, Illinois, United States | USD 134.42 M | – | – | |
Multiple online media and lifestyle brands are owned and operated. | 2007 | Levallois-perret, Hauts-de-seine, France | USD 4.7 M | – | – | |
Sports commentary and news are provided through Hupu's platform. | 2004 | Shanghai, Shanghai, China | USD 338.72 M | – | – |
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Frequently Asked Questions about Umano
Umano was founded in 2012 and raised its 1st funding round 1 year after it was founded.
Umano is headquartered in San Francisco, United States. It is registered at San Francisco, California, United States.
Umano is a funded company, having raised a total of $1M across 1 funding round to date. The company's 1st funding round was a Seed of $1M, raised on Jul 2013.
Umano was founded in 2012 in San Francisco, United States, within the mobile media sector. A mobile app was developed to deliver curated news and articles, with content selected by the platform and narrated by professional readers. From 2014, authors were enabled to produce and voice their own audio content. The company was acquired by Dropbox in May 2015, after which the service was discontinued in June 2015.
Umano has 3 investors. Key investors include Dropbox, Digital Garage, and Birchmere Ventures.
Yes. Umano was acquired by Dropbox in May 2015.