Inktomi Corporation has launched the world's first fully automated Directory Engine. Unlike Yahoo!, which employs hundreds of editors to plough through Web sites and structure them into neat little groups, the Inktomi Directory Engine does it all without anyone lifting a finger. Officially launched today, the Directory Engine has already been adopted by a number of companies including VerticalNet, GoTo.com, GoNow.com, GoProfit.com and Knight Ridder Real Cities. The technology uses advanced supercomputing techniques to simulate a form of "artificial intelligence". It's hoped that this approach will improve the quality of the service and also make the results more relevant to users. "Inktomi's launch of Directory Engine and the introduction of our new Concept Induction technology demonstrate our focus on building infrastructure that scales the Internet," said David Peterschmidt, president and CEO of Inktomi. "The Web grows at a faster rate than any medium in history, and the future of Web directories will necessarily be a hybrid of human and machine." ®