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With Incredible Labs acquisition, is Yahoo going after Google Now?


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With its latest acquisition, the start-up Incredible Labs, it seems Yahoo may have plans to develop its own competitor to Google Now.

Yahoo has acquired Incredible Labs and shut down the company's mobile personal assistant app, Donna - but it also hired five of Incredible Labs' seven former employees.

They'll now work in Yahoo's communications department on Yahoo mail, the company said.

Like Google Now, Donna was designed to anticipate its users's needs and provide help, like directions, reminders, and automatic emails, before it was even asked.

Oh, Donna

"In case you haven't heard of her, Donna's pretty amazing," Yahoo said in a statement about the acquisition. "She has an immense amount of intellect, she keeps you on time and gives you the information you need, when you need it. For her clients, she's the ultimate daily habit."

Shame they're shutting her down, then.

The statement continues, "When we met with the team from Incredible Labs, it was an immediate fit. As we look to the future, our visions are aligned in that we think technology should be smart enough to think for us."

So what exactly does that mean?

Yahoo hasn't announced any plans to develop its own Google Now competitor, but why else snatch up a hot personal assistant start-up and fold it into your own inner workings?

Yahoo's communications department handles everything from email to Yahoo Messenger, groups, contacts, and calendar. If anyone at Yahoo is going to develop a virtual assistant app it may very well be that department.

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