Elephone is billed as the world’s first smart and social phone directory. It will offer a lookup service for users to find details of unrecognized phone numbers, access to a global contact address book, and an innovative new feature to personalize and manage the information others see about them when receiving a phone call on their mobile.
The idea for Elephone was conceived in 2013 by Dutchman Bob, and Israeli Ariel. Both are in their early twenties. Bob is the Chief Technical Officer (CTO), and had previous success developing big data telephony websites in Europe. Ariel is the CEO, a role to which he brings his strong management experience and leadership skills from the public sector.
Ariel met Bob whilst they were working together for a humanitarian aid charity in Jerusalem. They spent hours discussing their ideas over lots of hummus and Turkish coffee at the local cafes! They had a strong belief that the current way people manage their contact information is outdated compared to the rest of the mobile phone experience. They decided that they wanted to move users away from having to swap contacts manually, to a smoother, more automated experience. It was their vision that you should always be able to have the most up to date information of your friends and business contacts. They also wanted users to be able to express their individuality and creativity through the phone call experience.
Bob also has a passion for the free flow of information, connecting people, and making their lives easier. That is why another main feature at launch is going to be the ability to search for details of phone calls received from unrecognized phone numbers.
Twinned with this desire was a recognition that in the modern world, privacy concerns are becoming more and more important to the average internet user. Bob and Ariel wanted users to own their data and have full control over its usage and availability.
Out of these early conversations Elephone was officially born in April 2014. Ariel and Bob rented an apartment in Tel Aviv, and set about bringing a team of programmers, designers, and finance experts to Israel. Good friends were enlisted: Adriaan from Holland was brought in as lead programmer, bringing with him an excellent grasp of PHP, and of new and emerging technologies. Adam from England arrived next to work on programming, finance, and blog writing. It is planned that a graphic designer from the Philippines will be arriving in the next few weeks. Elephone is turning into a truly international company.
Work days are varied and exciting. Some are spent hard at work coding, whilst others involve brainstorming sessions late into the night out on the balcony with a beer (or two…), plus meetings with potential investors and partners.
Tel Aviv is also a fantastic city to live in! The weather averages around 30 degrees C, and it has a beautiful sandy beach. The nightlife is famous worldwide, as are the restaurants. One of the team’s favourites is “The old man and the sea” in old Jaffa Port. Surrounded by historical architecture and built into the side of a sea cliff. The team also love visiting nearby Jerusalem, with it’s own mix of ancient history, shopping, and the best hummus in Israel on Ben Sira st.!
The international credentials of its employees give Elephone a strong foundation to build up the company as a global brand. Italy was chosen to be one of the very first countries for launch. The team believe that Italy is a natural choice: Italians share the same warm social and family culture as Israelis, plus a passion for fashion and the latest trends. Italian users can already visit www.elephone.it and subscribe for early access to the latest features.
Elephone wants to vastly improve your experience using your contacts, and to put users back in the seat of power when it comes to dealing with cold calls from unrecognized phone numbers. They invite their friends in Italy to come and join with them on the adventure.
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