Social media just isn’t what it used to be.
Instagram carries too much pressure, TikTok is filled with shopping ads, and X (formerly Twitter) is … well, do we even have to go there?
Part of why social media feels lackluster is because the social networks that were designed to connect us with people have turned their focus to media — often forgetting the “social” piece.
“People crave connection more than ever,” said Tiffany “TZ” Zhong, a founder and VC building a fresh social network for Gen Z called Nospace. “All the social-media platforms are more so media than they are social. That’s why people hang out in the comment sections of TikTok.”
And while many of the biggest social-media platforms have attempted to rekindle the rush of feeling connected — for instance, Meta’s Instagram reprioritized its “Close Friends” feature in 2023 — they have bigger priorities than helping people connect. From Meta to Snapchat to TikTok, shareholders, ad revenue, and overall user growth are all top of mind.
This tension between the everyday consumer and Big Tech has helped create a new guard of social-media founders who largely see the media element of social media as part of the problem. Instead, many prefer the term social network or social utilities.
Diem, a social search engine, aspires to be an “older sister” type of social-media platform, where women can get advice and camaraderie. Landing is somewhere where “likes” are replaced with “throwing glitter” at a collage. And PI.FYI, which launches this week on Apple’s App Store, came to life out of a vibrant Substack newsletter community.
As a new era for social media emerges, Business Insider is highlighting the founders who are building new apps to disrupt the social-networking landscape. We compiled this list with the help of nominations from readers, industry experts, and our reporting.
At a glance, these founders are alums of the old guard like Meta and Google, they are as young as 18, and many are women.
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