Pittsburgh Innovates

Pittsburgh startup AskBright.com has ambitions to change the world by becoming the "E-bay for advice."

Carnegie Mellon University  MBA candidate Brian Wirtz and his team of three students are developing a website that will create a global marketplace for infinite amounts of knowledge. Using a concept it calls “micro-collaboration,” the site will give users the tools to find, pay and connect online instantly to an expert on any subject, called a “bright visor,” through voice and live video conferencing.

From learning how to accomplish a Windsor tie, to medical or complex technology questions, the knowledge database hopes to become an indispensable tool for individuals and businesses, especially overseas. The startup is developing in the lab of Carnegie Mellon’s Project Olympus on Henry Street and hopes to have a product online by July 31st, says Wirtz.

In the U.S. we take for granted that we can call up someone we know, a doctor or lawyer or real estate agent, and ask for advice, Wirtz says. AskBright.com will assist the vast majority of global citizens who don’t have access to this wealth of knowledge, allowing them to connect for a block of time for a fee. The advisors set their own fee structure.

“It’s a global marketplace. We’re really excited that this will create wealth for our “BrightVisors,” explains Wirtz. “The bottom line is because wages are so low in quickly developing companies, our service can help people by shifting questions to those with high levels of education and experience. eBay reinvented the entrepreneur. AskBright.com is reinventing the infopreneur."