- Poparazzi is the new buzzy photo-sharing app, debuting Monday at the top of the U.S. App Store charts.
- Instead of posting photos of yourself, users to snap pictures of their friends.
- VCs are raving, calling the platform “brilliant” and predicting it will define the summer.
Some things are inevitable: the sun will set, the tides will change, and a new consumer social app will captivate venture capitalists.
Photo-sharing app Poparazzi launched Monday and flew to the top of the US App Store chart, winning over Gen Z and VCs alike.
“Things have been pretty hectic the last 24 hours,” the app’s developer, Alex Ma, told Insider over email. “Just trying to keep our servers from melting!”
The app, created by Ma and his brother Austen Ma, encourages you to become “your friend’s poparazzi” instead posting pictures of yourself. The app strives to “make social media less self-centered, and more about the people we care about,” developers told Protocol.
Rather than a perfectly curated Instagram grid, a user’s profile consists of unedited photos that others have taken. Poparazzi also eschews traditional social media metrics: there’s no follower count or likes, only total “views” on a user’s photos and the number of emoji reactions to their posts.
The app was created by TTYL, a company led by the Ma brothers. TTYL previously raised $2 million in 2018 in a round led by Floodgate Capital, according to Crunchbase.
After Poparazzi's splashy debut, the brothers have the venture world buzzing. Weekend Fund investor Ryan Hoover (who has been photographed on the app lounging by pools and holding various small dogs) tweeted that his firm was an investor and deemed the app "brilliant." SignalFire's Josh Constine called it the "perfect app for Hot Vax Summer," writing that "hyping up your squad is a lot more fun than self-glorification."
Chris Paik, a general partner at Pace Capital, took his praise even further, making a bold declaration: "Calling it now: SOUR + Poparazzi will define Summer '21."
-Chris Paik (@cpaik) May 25, 2021
He added that Olivia Rodrigo's new album SOUR and Poparazzi both debuted at number one on their respective charts. Another key similarity? Both are distinctly Gen Z.
Poparazzi's onboarding video flashes through photos of young people playing beer bong, tailgating, and sipping milkshakes. Even Ann Miura-Ko, whose firm Floodgate Capital invested in TTYL, joked on Twitter, "I'm too old to understand it and I've been told if I use it I'll make it uncool."
Meagan Loyst, an investor at Lerer Hippeau and founder of Gen Z VCs, received multiple texts last night from Gen Z friends telling her she needed to download the app. She told Insider that she understands the hype.
"It's like you're seeing your world through the eyes of your friends, which feels special," Loyst said.
Gaby Goldberg, a Gen Z VC at Bessemer Venture Partners, believes the app is perfect for the younger generation.
"Gen Z is hungry for authenticity, and this is what Poparazzi offers," Goldberg told Insider. "There's not even a front-facing camera, so no selfies allowed."
The expectations for Poparazzi are certainly high and the founders seem to determined to create a selfie-free, authentic experience.
They even spell it out in the community guidelines: "Good vibes only."
