Between misinformation, comparison, and general fatigue, navigating social media apps in 2024 can be pretty rough. It's a consensus we all seem to agree on, despite the amount of time we spend scrolling. If you ask developers, the answer to this troubling phenomenon is more social media apps.
Each year, dozens of new social media apps appear. Typically, the lifespan of one goes something like this: Someone gets bored with their feeds, so they create a new social media platform to fill a void. Then either: a) it falls flat, b) it's a good idea, and a larger social media platform buys it, takes the idea, and sells the rest for parts, or c) it's successful. We haven't seen a thriving new social media platform rivaling the giants since TikTok.
Last year, we saw a massive uptick in social media platforms after Elon Musk bought Twitter and turned it into X, a platform that now sucks. In response, developers created Mastodon, BlueSky, and, oh God, so many more. We haven't seen as many new apps this year, but plenty of apps have gained considerable popularity, worming their way into our collective consciousness and, worse, onto our phones.
Here are some of the apps that have been on our minds:
AirChat
Do you remember Clubhouse, the audio-first social media platform popular during the first few weeks of the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, only to become obsolete a few months later? AirChat is like that, combined with X and your group chat. It's an audio-first platform where you send voice notes to your followers, which AI then transcribes. It's also one of the only social media platforms launched this year.
Cara
Cara technically launched in early 2023, but for the first year, it had only a few thousand users. Its popularity really jumped this year, and it now has nearly a million users. Cara is an anti-AI site described as "a social media and portfolio platform for artists."
Lapse
Lapse is an "invite-only disposable camera" app. You take a photo, and it takes a few minutes or even hours to "develop." A grainy analog filter is added to your photo; you can post it in your gallery or archive it. It's like a combination of Dispo, the former invite-only disposable camera social media app launched by David Dobrik, and Instagram. It didn't launch this year, but it certainly picked up steam this year.
Threads
Instagram's response to Twitter's demise, Threads, launched late last year, but it's one of the most formative social media platforms of 2024 so far. It has more than 100 million downloads, and while I don't personally know anyone who likes it, a lot of people allegedly do.
Supernova
Supernova is dubbed a social media platform for positivity, which describes itself as an "ethical alternative" to social media giants like Instagram and Facebook. It launched in 2021, and while it hasn't had as many downloads as the other apps on this list, it's one to watch as we look for more ethical ways to use social media.
Its premise is pretty cool: Sixty percent of its advertising revenue goes to global charities, and it has "100% human moderation" to ensure the site is safe. Using the app is a lot like using Instagram.
Want more of the best of 2024 (so far)? Join Mashable as we look back at all the viral moments, movies, memes, dating trends, hyped up tech, and more that have delighted and amazed us so far this year.
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