Jerusalem start-up unveils next generation of iOS photo editing app

Lightricks, leading developers of premium image processing software for mobile, was founded in 2013 by five entrepreneurs from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

By ARIEL SHAPIRA
Updated: AUGUST 9, 2017 00:51
LIGHTRICKS, a Jerusalem-based start-up, has recently launched Enlight Photofox, an app that aims to push the boundaries of artistic photo manipulation and mobile creativity tools. The app’s screen is pictured here. (photo credit: Courtesy)
LIGHTRICKS, a Jerusalem-based start-up, has recently launched Enlight Photofox, an app that aims to push the boundaries of artistic photo manipulation and mobile creativity tools. The app’s screen is pictured here.
(photo credit: Courtesy)
Lightricks, a Jerusalem start-up operating out of the Hebrew University of Givat Ram, launched its newest breakthrough product last month: Enlight Photofox, the next generation of the lauded iOS photo editing app Enlight. Photofox, the latest app from Lightricks, introduces a new layers system that pushes the boundaries of artistic photo manipulation and redefines expectations from mobile creativity tools, bringing a layer-centric flow that gives immense power to aspiring artists on the go. Photofox has been tailored to captivate today’s growing mobile creative community, empowering them with the tools to generate impressive visual art.
Lightricks, leading developers of premium image processing software for mobile, was founded in 2013 by five entrepreneurs from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (four CS PhD students and one Supreme Court clerk) and is now paving the way as the innovative maker of creativity tools on mobile.
The company’s first two paid products, Facetune and Enlight, are two of the world’s most successful premium creativity apps, with over 11 million paid units sold. Enlight was Apple’s App of the Year for 2015, the #11 best-selling Paid iOS app in 2016, and was recently awarded the prestigious Apple Design Award at the 2017 WWDC. Facetune, a fun and powerful portrait retouching application, was Apple’s #4 best-selling Paid app in 2016 and was the #1 Paid App in over 130 countries.
Before raising money through Carmel Ventures in its first equity financing round in August 2015, Lightricks was 100% bootstrapped, generating $10 million in revenues a year. In addition to leadership in its core imaging technology, the company builds proprietary user acquisition systems through access to controlled APIs, and serves as Facebook’s case study for user acquisition. In November 2016, Lightricks began pioneering subscription business models for mobile tools with Facetune 2 – following recent, major iOS platform policy announcements in which the company participated.
Lightricks, whose story began four years ago in a small apartment in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Nachlaot, has grown from four to over 80 employees, complete with a state-of-the-art research team, in-house designers, a marketing team and expert developers at the top of their field, many of whom were handpicked from the reputable 8200 military unit. For those looking to unleash their inner artist, Lightricks’ new app, Photofox, is available for free on the App Store.
Robot for any work place
Kryon Systems new “digital employees” are a great addition to any department, optimizing work-flow so that their human counterparts can focus on the tasks that require more time and a human touch. After all, who hasn’t dreamed of having a team member whose role is to take care of the less thrilling parts of the job? Everyone these days is talking about robots. Bots of every size, shape and form, are impacting the way that just about every successful business operates.
So it’s not surprising that the conversation has turned to the question of whether Robotic Process Automation (RPA), forecast to become a $2.9 billion market by 2021, will replace people in the workplace.
Robotic Process Automation harnesses new technologies such as machine learning to create a “virtual workforce” of software robots that execute a wide range of the repetitive, humdrum tasks that office workers know all too well.
Why does this matter to the average employee? Because employers hire their staff for their skills and human qualities that often get lost as their workloads are piled high with tedious, soul-crushing tasks that under-utilize their capabilities.

Stay updated with the latest news!

Subscribe to The Jerusalem Post Newsletter

Subscribe Now
Yet by offloading these tasks to a software-based robotic workforce, employees can be free to focus on the more important and creative elements of their jobs while enterprises focus on their core business – a win-win situation.
“Success in business can no longer be separated from the use of technology, and businesses are increasingly utilizing a wide array of automation services and other solutions,” said Harel Tayeb, the CEO of Kryon Systems, a global provider of RPA services.
“RPA in particular is making companies more efficient and productive while maintaining employee satisfaction, due to its ease of use and flexibility in the tasks and skills that it can handle.
These new ‘digital employees’ are a great addition to any department, optimizing work-flow so that their human counterparts can focus on the tasks that require more time and a human touch. After all, who hasn’t dreamed of having a team member whose role is to take care of the less thrilling parts of the job?”
App for everyone
Israeli AppsVillage developed a new platform that enables small, medium and large businesses to create engaging professional Apps in a snap. It’s a platform that transforms Facebook pages into powerful mobile commerce Apps both for iPhone and Android in seconds.
Businesses can now effortlessly transform their Facebook pages into powerful and engaging Apps, with AppsVillage handling all the back-end development both for Android and iPhone mobile devices.
Just as businesses need to have a website and Facebook page, it’s also essential today to have an app. Many business owners find that creating an app is an extensive, complex and expensive process, taking weeks or months to complete and costing thousands of dollars.
AppsVillage alleviates those concerns by allowing businesses to create easily powerful apps in seconds, while maintaining the branding and messaging they’ve built on social media with their customer base.
Apps built on the AppsVillage’s website include powerful features such as push notifications, in-app purchases, coupons, appointment setting, cash back, Facebook ads and live chat to allow businesses to interact with their customers on a more engaged social level that will increase loyalty and revenues.
Max Bluvband, cofounder and CEO of AppsVillage, said: “Business owners are experts in their own industries but they might not have the technological expertise to code and build apps. By going to our website, every business can easily turn its Facebook page into a powerful App within fifteen seconds. We want to level the playing field and help businesses of any size create an amazing app within three simple steps.”
AppsVillage jump-starts a business’ app with all the necessary content from the business’s Facebook page, so each app has all the right branding and content already built-in. Business owners can easily manage their app without extensive coding, software, technical knowledge, or having to hire consultants and designers.