Apptisan #021 — Talking with Starry Team: As an AI-driven bilingual browser, it inherits our core values and rigorous standards developed with Xmind
Introducing Starry, the AI-powered browser designed to streamline your foreign web page navigation while eliminating distractions for a seamless browsing experience.
Name: Starry - AI Bilingual Browser
Developer / Team: Xmind
Platform: iOS, iPadOS
Read this newsletter issue in Chinese (中文) .
Please describe your product.
Starry is an AI-powered browser that designed to streamline your foreign web page navigation while eliminating distractions for a seamless browsing experience.
Our bilingual browsing feature not only facilitates barrier-free access to foreign internet content but also supports your language learning through side-by-side linguistic comparison. Leveraging cutting-edge AI translation, Starry delivers translations that stay true to the original meaning, moving beyond the limitations of traditional machine translation.
Was there a pivotal moment that inspired your product’s creation?
We inhabit a world rich in linguistic diversity, where valuable content isn’t always available in our mother tongue. For those eager to engage with content in other languages, particularly English, the reading barrier poses a significant challenge. The revelation that 55% of online content is in English, while only 16% of the global population speaks the language, highlighted the enormous impact of linguistic obstacles. This disparity means a wealth of high-quality English content remains out of reach for the majority. While conventional machine translation offers some assistance, it often falls short in delivering the accuracy and fluency needed for true comprehension.
We observed that existing translation and bilingual comparison plugins, though helpful, often require technical savvy and provide a suboptimal user experience. This realization drove us to create Starry, a browser specifically designed for bilingual parallel browsing. Our aim is to lower the entry barrier, empowering more people to effortlessly overcome language hurdles and access foreign language content with ease.
Moreover, developing a standalone browser enables us to implement deeper customizations and optimizations. We can integrate robust privacy safeguards, prevent user tracking by websites, and deliver a more seamless interactive experience - features that are challenging to implement through plugins alone.
What makes your product unique compared to others in the market?
Starry goes beyond merely combining the strengths of traditional browsers and bilingual comparison plugins; it significantly enhances both functionality and user experience. What truly distinguishes Starry from other browsers is its seamlessly integrated bilingual comparison feature and its robust AI-powered translation capabilities, offering a superior cross-lingual browsing experience.
Furthermore, as a fully-fledged browser, Starry offers extensive customization options. We’re committed to continually expanding and refining our features to adapt to evolving user needs. Looking ahead, we have plans to introduce even more innovative functionalities.
Through this fusion of integration and innovation, Starry transcends being just another tool; it becomes a vital conduit for cross-linguistic communication, empowering users to effortlessly access global information and facilitate knowledge exchange. We’re confident that Starry will revolutionize your browsing experience, becoming an essential component of your daily digital life.
How have you marketed your product, and what key lessons have you learned?
At present, Starry has just been released on the global App Store, and we haven’t initiated any targeted promotional campaigns yet. Our feature on Apptisan marks our first promotional effort for the product.
Looking ahead for Starry: Given our global launch across major regions and our substantial target user base both domestically and internationally, we’re placing equal emphasis on promotion in both markets. Our primary strategy is to establish a strong social media presence for the product. We aim to attract potential users by sharing our product philosophy, offering usage tips, highlighting user experiences, and providing update logs. Following this, we plan to collaborate with relevant influencers for product endorsements. We’ll also leverage product launch platforms and continuously refine our App Store presence. In the near term, a key focus for our international strategy is to launch Starry on Product Hunt, which we hope will significantly boost our visibility.
As the product evolves, we’ll evaluate the need for paid advertising based on our growth trajectory and market response.
I’ve noticed that you launched several products prior to Starry. From promoting these products, what insights do you think could be valuable for other developers?
Independent developers often face significant constraints when it comes to promotional resources. This typically leads to a cautious, if not conservative, approach when considering partnerships with influencers or key opinion leaders (KOLs). The primary reason is the substantial financial investment usually required for such collaborations, which can be a considerable burden for many independent developers. However, relying solely on one’s own social media presence often fails to yield the desired promotional impact.
Given these challenges, maximizing ROI (Return on Investment) with a limited budget becomes crucial. I’d like to share some practical strategies that could help developers achieve greater success in their promotional efforts:
Strategic partner selection: Instead of targeting high-profile influencers, focus on identifying micro or mid-tier influencers whose audience closely aligns with your product. They often charge less but can deliver better results due to their more targeted follower base.
Collaborative content creation: Engage influencers in the content creation process. Allow them to craft promotional material that resonates with their style and audience preferences. This approach not only reduces your workload but also enhances the authenticity and appeal of the content.
Test the waters with short-term collaborations: Begin with brief partnerships, assessing effectiveness through one or two promotional campaigns. This approach helps control costs while providing concrete data to evaluate the potential for long-term collaboration.
Leverage User-Generated Content (UGC): Encourage your existing users to share their experiences with your product. Amplify this content through social media initiatives and incentive programs. UGC is cost-effective and carries high credibility and persuasive power.
Embrace data-driven decision making: Prioritize data collection and analysis throughout your promotional efforts. Use these insights to identify the most effective channels and content formats, optimizing your strategy to ensure every dollar is well-spent.
Implement multi-channel integrated promotion: Diversify your promotional efforts across various platforms rather than concentrating on a single channel. Synchronize your messaging across social media, blogs, and community forums to create a synergistic promotional effect.
Maintain realistic expectations: Remember that due to the algorithmic nature of different platforms, viral success can never be guaranteed. It’s crucial to prepare for various outcomes and maintain a balanced perspective on the results.
By implementing these strategies, independent developers can optimize their promotional impact within budget constraints and achieve a higher ROI. I hope these insights prove valuable, helping you navigate the promotional landscape more effectively and achieve greater success.
Are there any products out there that you feel deserve more recognition?
Product Manager Zeno: I’d say Play, an iOS-focused prototyping tool. Unlike Figma, it effortlessly implements and adheres to Apple’s design guidelines. Plus, creating interactions and animations is incredibly straightforward. It’s a great tool for quickly showcasing product demos, potentially speeding up the development process.
Product Manager Aria: Quin’s AI-powered Tarot card readings are fascinating!
Engineer Morris: Duolingo
Growth Strategist Una:
Mapify: This tool leverages AI to automatically generate well-structured, hierarchical mind maps, eliminating the need for manual organization. Mapify has significantly boosted my productivity, helping me quickly organize my thoughts every time I use it.
Quin - AI Tarot: Today’s youth face unprecedented choices and pressures, often seeking clear guidance when feeling lost. Whether it’s career decisions, relationship issues, or everyday choices, Quin’s AI Tarot offers decision support and positive psychological guidance, providing timely and profound insights. Quin offers a novel approach to self-discovery and decision-making through its precise AI Tarot interpretations. It empowers young people to navigate life’s complexities and challenges with greater confidence and composure.
Can you name some products that have significantly improved your sense of happiness?
Product Manager Zeno: The podcast app “小宇宙” has been a source of joy for me for quite some time. It offers a wealth of fascinating content on demand, from entrepreneurial stories and philosophical musings to historical anecdotes and peculiar tales. Unlike video or text, audio content allows for multitasking - you can listen while walking, working, or even as you drift off to sleep. The voices in these podcasts provide a unique form of companionship, helping to ease tension and promote relaxation.
Product Manager Aria: The “Lifelight” app, with its focus on living in the moment, has been transformative. As someone who used to be an avid journal keeper, I found myself increasingly swept up in the fragmented nature of video content, losing track of how my days were spent. This app allows me to capture fleeting moments through photos, music that moves me, and brief thoughts. It helps me truly feel present and alive in my day-to-day life.
Engineer Morris: Duolingo has been a game-changer, allowing me to maximize my free time for language learning.
Engineer Stephen:
Balance: A meditation app with a clean interface and rich content.
钱迹: My go-to daily budgeting and expense tracking app.
Google Photos: For photo management, it offers unlimited storage with Pixel phones and impressive AI-powered face and object recognition.
Growth Strategist Una:
Headspace: This app offers a variety of meditation courses and relaxation exercises, helping to alleviate stress and boost mental well-being. Each meditation session with Headspace leaves me feeling calmer, less stressed, and significantly happier overall.
MD Vinyl: This app transforms iPhones and iPads into virtual record players. Using Vinyl during focused moments greatly enhances the aesthetic appeal and ambiance of my environment, adding a touch of vintage charm to my digital life.
Tell us a bit about yourself and what you envision for the future.
We are the team behind Xmind, a cutting-edge mind mapping tool designed to help users organize their thoughts, plan projects, and boost creativity with unparalleled efficiency. Our product stands out not just for its continuous functional innovations - such as diverse map structures, seamless collaboration features, and comprehensive export options - but also for its commitment to user experience excellence. With an interface that’s both sleek and intuitive, Xmind empowers users to quickly harness the full potential of our tool, regardless of their experience level.
Building on our success with Xmind, we’re thrilled to introduce Starry, our venture into an entirely new product category. As an AI-powered browser, Starry embodies the core values and exacting standards we’ve cultivated through our work on Xmind. We’re channeling the same dedication and enthusiasm into Starry’s development, with the goal of delivering an exceptional browsing experience.
In crafting Starry, we’re not just focusing on groundbreaking features like bilingual parallel browsing, ad blocking, and enhanced privacy protection. We’re also meticulously refining every aspect of the user experience, ensuring that each detail reflects our commitment to quality and professionalism. Through relentless iteration and refinement, we’re confident that Starry will emerge as a standout in the immersive browser landscape, becoming an indispensable tool in our users’ digital lives.
About Apptisan
Apptisan is a portmanteau of “application” and “artisan”, signifying “a weekly exploration into the world of apps and the passionate artisans who create them.” Each issue is a conversation with global creators, aiming to uncover and present intriguing products to a wider audience.
For those who prefer Chinese, you can subscribe via Quail. Creators interested in featuring their products are encouraged to submit them through our form, and we’ll be in touch promptly.
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