In a bid to extend its reach beyond the educational sector, London-based notetaking platform Goodnotes has announced its acquisition of the South Korean startup Dropthebit. Known for its tool Traw, which runs a video and meeting summary app, this move enables Goodnotes to delve into productivity tools aimed at professionals. As part of this agreement, the triad co-founders of Dropthebit will transition to Goodnotes. Furthermore, Traw has indicated their intent to shut down their tool in February, though current users will be able to export their data.

Since its inception in 2020, Dropthebit has raised $1 million and initially launched as a whiteboard solution in 2022. Traw offered a tool for recording whiteboard activities during meetings or lectures while also providing a meeting summary that could be reviewed later. Last year, however, the focus shifted to meeting summarization whilst incorporating an AI tool designed to summarize and categorize YouTube videos.

Steven Chan, the founder of Goodnotes, was always impressed by Dropthebit’s work and commended their multimodality, which he feels complements Goodnotes perfectly. He also revealed that Dropthebit had been considering obtaining Series A funding, and an acquisition by Goodnotes was the preferred outcome.

Goodnotes, currently boasting over 24 million monthly active users, primarily caters to students by offering a digital notebook-like solution. The company, which introduced an iPad app in 2011, most recently launched Goodnotes 6, which offered a digital marketplace for planners and subject-specific study notes. It has also introduced paid educational modules for various courses and qualifications. Their most recent acquisition indicates their intent to cater to professionals, analyzing videos and creating spreadsheets.

With Traw’s capabilities, Goodnotes is also set to delve into the transcription business. Aiming at becoming a “digital paperless notebook” for professionals, Goodnotes continues to enhance its notetaking tools and experience for various users, including an investment in WeBudding, a digital stationery startup in Korea.