Twitter acquires Summize, first exit for Betaworks

Twitter Inc. has indeed acquired New York conversation search engine startup Summize Inc., confirming a rumor that Tech Confidential had previously reported on. Terms are undisclosed.

"Providing tools for filtering all the real-time information coursing through Twitter has long been part of our vision," blogs Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey. "There is an undeniable need to search, filter, and otherwise interact with the volumes of news and information being transmitted to Twitter every second. We will be adding search and its related features to the core offering of Twitter in the very near future."

Summize's five engineers will move to San Francisco and take jobs at Twitter.

Twitter investors seem pleased. "I can't wait to see the results that will flow from combining these two impressive teams," Twitter backer Chris Sacca tells Tech Confidential. "Their informal collaborations have already changed the way many of us interact with Twitter. Now that they will all be under one roof, I think we can all expect a lot more innovation."

Twitter, which has become the darling of the Web 2.0 crowd despite the lack of a discernible business model, recently added Spark Capital and Jeff Bezos of Bezos Expeditions as investors to existing investors Union Square Ventures and Digital Garage in a round worth at least $15 million at a $100 million valuation.

Summize is backed by New York's innovative incubator Betaworks, profiled recently by Tech Confidential. It marks Betaworks' first exit. -- Mary Kathleen Flynn

For more on Twitter's acquisition of Summize see Twitter post, Fred Wilson's post, John Borthwick's post and previous post from Tech Confidential

For more on Betaworks see May 2 profile from Tech Confidential