280 North, Inc.
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Software development |
| Founded | 2008 |
| Founder | Tom Robinson, Francisco Tolmasky, Ross Boucher |
| Fate | Acquired by Motorola |
| Successor | Motorola |
Area served | Worldwide |
| Products | Objective-J, Cappuccino, 280 Slides, Atlas |
280 North was established in 2008 as a web software startup by Tom Robinson, Francisco Tolmasky, and Ross Boucher. Prior to founding the company, Tolmasky and Boucher contributed to Apple’s projects involving the iPhone and iTunes. The firm created a technology suite that included Objective-J, a programming language akin to JavaScript in the same way Objective-C relates to C, along with Cappuccino, an open-source adaptation of Apple's Cocoa API. Their primary offering was 280 Slides, a web-based presentation application designed to rival Keynote and PowerPoint. Additionally, they produced Atlas, a visual drag-and-drop integrated development environment (IDE) tailored for web applications compatible with the iPhone API. Although Atlas was intended for open-source release, it remained proprietary following 280 North's acquisition by Motorola in 2010 for $20 million.
History
The main focus of 280 North was to utilize web technologies to create applications with native-like performance, catering to developers who required powerful tools for building rich web experiences. Their strategy involved promoting community engagement through open-source projects like Objective-J and Cappuccino, encouraging innovation within the web development ecosystem. After Motorola acquired the company, 280 North’s technology was incorporated into broader mobile platform efforts; however, certain initiatives such as Atlas were retained as proprietary software despite initial plans for open sourcing.