Pinterest Acquires Vochi: Investing in Creator Tools

Pinterest Enhances Creator Capabilities with Vochi Acquisition

Pinterest has announced a strategic investment in creator tools and video functionality through the acquisition of Vochi, a video creation and editing application. The financial terms of the deal remain undisclosed.

This acquisition will integrate both Vochi’s intellectual property and its team of 40 professionals, including the founders, into Pinterest’s operations. The goal is to expand Pinterest’s suite of video creation tools and empower its creators to produce more engaging video content.

Shifting Focus to Video Content

Over the last year, Pinterest has been actively transitioning its platform beyond a simple image pinboard. The company is now positioning itself as a hub for creators who utilize video to share ideas and inspiration.

This shift led to the launch of Ideas Pins earlier this year – a video-centric feature offering creators editing tools like voiceovers, music integration, transitions, and interactive elements. Furthermore, Pinterest introduced a “Watch” tab, mirroring TikTok’s interface, and incentivized creator participation with a $20 million creator award program.

Pinterest has also begun to feature original video content, known as Creator Originals. Creators are also able to monetize their videos through product tagging, affiliate shopping programs, and brand collaborations.

Vochi’s Technology and Capabilities

Pinterest believes that incorporating Vochi’s technology will significantly improve the quality of video content available to its users.

Founded in 2019 by Ilya Lesun, Anna Buglakova, Vasily Kasnitsky, and Sergei Malyutin, and incubated by Andrei Avsievich and Yury Melnichek from Bulba Ventures, Vochi utilizes a unique computer vision-based video segmentation algorithm. This allows for the application of diverse effects to specific moving objects within a video or to elements within still images.

Vochi’s effects library includes options like motion highlighting, glitch effects, cloning features, light and shadow manipulation, and the addition of animated elements such as butterflies or neon shapes.

According to Vochi CEO Ilya Lesun, the app employs two trained convolutional neural networks for semi-supervised Video Object Segmentation and Instance Segmentation. The team also developed a custom rendering engine enabling instant 4K application on mobile devices without compromising quality.

In addition to its specialized effects, Vochi offers standard photo and video filters, alongside traditional editing tools. The app had approximately 500,000 monthly active users, with around 20,000 subscribers committed to paid plans as of earlier this year.

Pinterest’s Rationale for the Acquisition

Pinterest expressed its interest in Vochi due to the alignment of its technology with Pinterest’s broader investment in video as a key creative medium. The speed at which Vochi’s effects can be applied to video was also a significant factor.

Bin Liu, Head of Creators Engineering at Pinterest, stated that the company’s aim is to create a platform where users can seamlessly transition from inspiration to realization. Expanding creator tools is seen as crucial to achieving this vision.

Liu further expressed excitement about collaborating with Vochi’s team to deliver enhanced video creation tools and quality content to Pinterest’s global user base of over 400 million Pinners.

Future Integration and Funding

The Vochi team will remain based in Europe, and the Vochi app will initially continue to operate as a standalone application. (Note: The company’s original website, referenced in the App Store, was temporarily unavailable, with a redirect to vochi.com.)

Pinterest has not yet detailed the specific plans for integrating Vochi’s technology directly into the Pinterest platform, but it is anticipated that Pinterest will eventually offer its own integrated video creation and editing experience within its core app.

Prior to the acquisition, Vochi had secured $4.2 million in funding and was preparing for a Series A funding round. Investors included TA Ventures, Angelsdeck, A.Partners, Startup Wise Guys, Kolos VC, and angel investors from companies like Belarus-based Verv and Estonian unicorn Bolt.