• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechPinterest

Pinterest Acquires Talent From Two Startups to Expand Engineering Team

By
Leena Rao
Leena Rao
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Leena Rao
Leena Rao
Down Arrow Button Icon
December 8, 2015, 1:00 PM ET
Pinterest Said To Be Raising Funding At $11 Billion Valuation
The Pinterest Inc. application (app) is displayed for a photograph in the Apple Inc. App Store on an iPad Air in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Thursday, Feb. 19, 2015. Pinterest Inc. the online scrapbooking company, is seeking to raise funding at a valuation of about $11 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter, continuing the soaring values of a group of high-profile technology startups. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesPhotograph by Andrew Harrer — Bloomberg via Getty Images

Social media curation app Pinterest added to its product and engineering teams, with the announcement of two acquisitions on Tuesday. The company said it has acquired some of the team from product search app The Hunt and image and messaging app Pext.

This marks Pinterest’s 8th and 9th acquisitions, after Punchfork, Livestar, Hackermeter, Visual Graph, Icebergs, Kosei and Hike Labs. Although financial terms were not disclosed, these recent acquisitions appear to be acqui-hires since no technology was bought as part of the transactions.

Founded by Tim Weingarten, The Hunt is a community-powered service for finding and buying products. Users simply paste a photo of an item into the service and the startup’s members will scour the internet for where the item is sold. The company had previously raised $16 million in funding from Khosla Ventures and others. Weingarten and members of the product and engineering teams from The Hunt will be joining Pinterest, but an unspecified number of employees will not be joining the company as part of the acquisition.

Pext’s app turns text messages into memes by allowing users to insert images into their messages. Only one of the startup’s co-founders will be joining Pinterest.

For Pinterest, the addition of engineering and product talent could be crucial as the company scales its advertising and “buy button” business. With 100 million monthly active users, Pinterest announced earlier this year it would make pins shoppable with a much-anticipated “buy button.” Pinterest also debuted new ways this year for advertisers to target the company’s growing base of users, as well as an in-house creative agency that will create interactive promoted Pins for large advertisers. Early advertisers on Pinterest’s platform include Gap (GPS), Target, Old Navy, Kraft, General Mills (GIS), and Expedia (EXPE).

The media startup recently said the the number of “pinners” (people sharing images and links) has doubled on its platform in the last 18 months and the number of searches on its service have increased by 81% over the last year.

Subscribe to Data Sheet, Fortune’s daily newsletter on the business of technology.

About the Author
By Leena Rao
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

AI ‘slop’ is flooding YouTube Kids—and more than 200 groups and experts are calling for a ban
CybersecurityYouTube
AI ‘slop’ is flooding YouTube Kids—and more than 200 groups and experts are calling for a ban
By Catherina GioinoApril 1, 2026
47 seconds ago
Deutsche Bank asked AI it’s true that AI will solve the economy’s inflation problems. The robots answered
Economydisruption
Deutsche Bank asked AI it’s true that AI will solve the economy’s inflation problems. The robots answered
By Nick LichtenbergApril 1, 2026
33 minutes ago
ntsb
LawAutos
Why hands-free systems in self-driving cars aren’t actually safer, according to the NTSB
By Josh Funk and The Associated PressApril 1, 2026
47 minutes ago
Mike Wirth, chief executive officer of Chevron.
EnergyData centers
Microsoft and Chevron enter exclusivity deal on powering West Texas AI data center complex
By Jordan BlumApril 1, 2026
1 hour ago
A chip research center site operations manager stands next to a window overlooking the facility.
EnvironmentData centers
Data centers are so hot their ‘heat island’ effect is raising temperatures up to 6 miles away and impacting 343 million people worldwide, study finds
By Sasha RogelbergApril 1, 2026
3 hours ago
How AI will make your Shake Shack order even faster
NewslettersCIO Intelligence
How AI will make your Shake Shack order even faster
By John KellApril 1, 2026
3 hours ago

Most Popular

Jerome Powell says the $39 trillion national debt is ‘not unsustainable,’ but warns the trajectory ‘will not end well’
Economy
Jerome Powell says the $39 trillion national debt is ‘not unsustainable,’ but warns the trajectory ‘will not end well’
By Fortune EditorsMarch 30, 2026
2 days ago
Kevin O'Leary says if you earn $68,000 a year and follow this rule, you'll retire a millionaire
Personal Finance
Kevin O'Leary says if you earn $68,000 a year and follow this rule, you'll retire a millionaire
By Fortune EditorsMarch 31, 2026
1 day ago
Two-thirds of parents say their adult Gen Z kids still rely on them financially  for support—even though it's putting them under strain
Success
Two-thirds of parents say their adult Gen Z kids still rely on them financially  for support—even though it's putting them under strain
By Fortune EditorsMarch 31, 2026
1 day ago
A man used AI to call 3,000 Irish bartenders to track the cost of Guinness. Now pubs are lowering their prices to compete
AI
A man used AI to call 3,000 Irish bartenders to track the cost of Guinness. Now pubs are lowering their prices to compete
By Fortune EditorsMarch 30, 2026
2 days ago
Markets cheer as Trump threatens to abandon Iran war, but Jamie Dimon sides with allies: ‘Win this thing and clean up the straits’
Energy
Markets cheer as Trump threatens to abandon Iran war, but Jamie Dimon sides with allies: ‘Win this thing and clean up the straits’
By Fortune EditorsMarch 31, 2026
1 day ago
Hiring just hit a level not seen since the economy was ‘closed down literally’ during COVID, top economist says
Economy
Hiring just hit a level not seen since the economy was ‘closed down literally’ during COVID, top economist says
By Fortune EditorsMarch 31, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.