California-based startup Powerset has this week officially tabled its attempt to redefine online search parameters following the unveiling of its new semantic search engine.
Powerset launches semantic search engine. Image: Powerset.
Referred to by various media outlets prior to its beta rollout as a possible acquisition target for Microsoft Corp. as it seeks out a potential ‘Google killer,’ the Powerset search system works by understanding and processing natural language input rather than just key words.
More pointedly, while the search engine will still provide in-depth results based on individual word input, users can type in multiple keywords, specific phrases or full questions and the engine will analyse the entry in its entirety and then provide relevant answers and related information pooled alongside a listing of closely associated online destinations and information sources.
However, while the idea of Powerset’s search engine is certainly promising, its current beta status won’t cause much of a threat to the likes of Google and Yahoo, not least because coverage is currently limited to files found within the Freebase open database and online user-created encyclopaedia Wikipedia.
The service is expected to expand across many other sources once it has proven itself by laying down the necessary foundations of reliability and accuracy. And, speaking of accuracy, how well does Powerset perform when put to the test?
“Powerset took 56 seconds to respond with a note about technical difficulties. A few minutes later, the site processed the same query in only a second or two. Other queries took several seconds,” commented the tech boffins at Information Week, who also noted that Powerset may be “overreaching” in terms of ambition based on “the uneven technical response” of the search tool.
Such sluggish performance should not really be evident in the service given that the Powerset search runs on Amazon’s EC2 Web service, which Powerset’s founder and CEO, Barney Pell, has said “is able to match the infrastructure of large-scale search companies on a startup budget.”
Also, while Powerset does offer certain useful interface elements and handy segmented results, the testers at Information Week were not exactly bowled over by its overall accuracy at this point in time, noting that Powerset failed to return a definitive answer when asked directly who the Chinese president was. Conversely, Google’s top search result clearly stated “China — President: HU Jintao” when prompted to tackle the same word-for-word question.
Writing on his blog, Mr. Pell has subsequently claimed Powerset’s opening day dip was down to a denial of service attack experienced just two hours after it launched the beta.
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