A former U.S. Marine and current University of Maryland undergraduate, Ortiz recently created the free smartphone app uPulse, available now for Androids and soon for iPhones.
What is uPulse?
We got the patent on the ability to give visual representation of users when they’re in a location. The more people join a ‘pulse,’ the larger it grows. If a big group of people joins a pulse within a short period of time, it will picture a heartbeat [and] beat faster. It’s also color-coordinated for different event types. Red is restaurant, blue is bars, purple is entertainment, orange is sporting events, yellow is fast food and green are Facebook events. When you click on the pulse to get information, you can see their specials. You’d be able to read Buffalo Wild Wings has six chicken wings and a pitcher of beer for $5. It’s a way to market to people over their phone. Our goal is to get group coupon-type deals.
Can you see who else is checked in?
No, it’s completely anonymous. In the future, we’re going to add the ability for users to create groups with their friends so that you’d be able to let just your friends know that you’re at a location, or you could create circles of friends for different interests. … You’d be able to tap into event calendars and draw pulses based on interests.
How else could you use it?
Let’s say you got invited to a party and you weren’t sure if you wanted to go. What’s cool about uPulse is you’re able to open up your phone and see, “Wow, I thought it was going to be dead, but so far 20 people have already checked into Rachel’s Happy Hour — let’s go.” It’s a way you’re able to see in real time if an event is actually worth going to.
