MANILA - A mobile app developed in the Philippines aims to bring the familiarity of Facebook and other social networks to connect startups to mentors and clients.

QBO takes out the noise from the news feed and instead highlights its users' work experience. The app has been downloaded 50,000 times on the Google Play Store and is also available on iOS.

"Sometimes the problem with Facebook is that its cluttered," said QBO director Katrina Chan.

"What makes our platform so strong is that there’s so many passionate and dedicated individuals in the startup ecosystem and this is the platform they’ll be using to connect with each other,” Chan said.

QBO was developed by Honesty Time Limited, the same firm behind Peekawoo, a dating app with the conservative Asian culture in mind, and the Department of Trade and Industry's ASEAN Hub app for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit last year.

The app's name, QBO, is inspired by the Filipino sense of community or "bayanihan," often symbolized by villagers carrying an entire "kubo" or nipa hut on their shoulders, Chan said.

"With our app, never has it been easier for our entrepreneurs to access the essential services and resources that will help them take their companies to the next level," Chan said.

App user Joyce Camille Cepe, who handles technopreneur projects for the Bicol State University, said QBO helped her find coaching strategies for work.