Image credits: Scrunchie
Ever since BeReal became popular among Gen Z, giving them a platform to be their authentic selves instead of scrolling through edited content, we’ve seen a rise in social apps catering to their desire for authenticity and connection. I did. Swsh is a social app for Gen Z, founded by Gen Z, who wants to strengthen real friendships with their followers instead of superficial relationships.
This app is basically a mobile version of the “Most Likely To” game that’s been around for ages and almost never fails to liven up a party. It’s also a great icebreaker when meeting new people or catching up with a group of friends, whether virtually or in person.
Every night at 9 p.m., Swsh users will answer five “Most Likely” questions each day with their friends to see who will “dance with a stranger” or “party until 3 a.m. and work out at 6 a.m.” Vote for the one with the highest gender. Users collect top prizes and points depending on the number of votes they receive. There is also a comments section where users can discuss which friend best fits the description.
The poll is powered by Open AI’s ChatGPT and curated by Swsh’s four-person team, Swsh co-founder and CEO Alexandra Debow explained to TechCrunch.
In addition to surveys, Swsh plans to gradually test and roll out more in-app experiences “as a way to feel natural to people you meet IRL and make it fun to stay in touch afterwards.” said Debou, mentioning features such as posting and sharing photos and voice memos after the event.
Swsh will begin public beta in September, with a formal release scheduled for early 2024. This app is currently only available for iOS devices. An Android version will also be released soon.
The name of this app comes from the phrase “Let’s meet again, somewhere, somehow.” This is a word Debow coined after getting tired of saying goodbye to his many friends. As a Canadian born and raised in Hong Kong, Debow has met many foreigners who have never stayed long. She was frustrated by having to communicate with her long-distance friends through social media.
“Social media confuses friendships with followers, and the constant texting can be exhausting,” Debow says. “We believe that compromise exists. It’s an easy and fun way to build important relationships.”
Debow is also the founder of Alive Vibe, a virtual event marketplace. Entrepreneurs Network, a network for women entrepreneurs. and “Why Wait?” Women Entrepreneurship Collective is Shanghai’s first Gen Z-led women’s entrepreneurship event.
Swsh has two other co-founders: Weilyn Chong (COO) and Nathan Ahn (CTO). Mr. Chong is an economics and computer science student at Princeton University and serves on the board of directors of the Nasdaq Center for Entrepreneurship. She is also the co-founder of Entrepreneur Network. Anne studied computer science at Yale University and interned as a software engineer at Meta.
Debow and Chong spoke at TechCrunch Disrupt last month.
The startup recently secured $1.7 million in pre-seed funding. This helps us build products and hire engineers. The round was co-led by Stellation Capital and MaC Venture Capital, and was co-led by notable angels Glenn Solomon, Cory Levy (Z Fellows), Cyril Berdugo, Patrick de Picciotto, Ansh Nanda, and Richard Li.
“Consumer social has a history of being reinvented by young people. Facebook, Instagram and Snap are just a few classic examples,” said Peter Boyce, founder of Stellation Capital. I am. “If all goes well, young founding teams like Swsh will be next in line to invent new consumer platforms that shape how we spend time with the important people in our lives. There is likely to be.”