Podcast Summary
Young founder's determination leads to unique social media platform: 19-year-old Raluka Pop identified a gap in social media and coded her own platform, Hive Social, offering a mix of features from older platforms and appealing to users seeking alternatives, despite challenges of a small team.
Innovation and determination can lead individuals to create unique solutions in the tech world, even in the face of competition from larger companies. This was highlighted in a conversation on The Vergecast about Hive Social, a social media platform founded by Raluka Pop at the young age of 19. Pop identified a gap in the social media landscape and learned to code to launch her own site. Hive Social offers a mix of features from older platforms like Myspace and Twitter, appealing to users looking for alternatives. Despite challenges, such as having only a small team of developers, these individuals are making an impact and demonstrating that big ideas can come from the most unexpected places.
A young coder's journey to launch a unique social media app: 19-year-old Raluca, despite challenges, launched Hive Social, a unique app with customization features and diverse content, while working full-time and attending college.
Raluca, a 19-year-old self-taught coder, identified a market demand for a unique social media app and brought her vision to life by launching Hive Social in late 2019. Initially developed single-handedly, she later brought on a developer and designer to help with the project. Hive Social stands out from competitors with its customization features, such as expressing music taste, color themes, zodiac signs, and pronouns on profiles. The Discover page also adds to the app's appeal by introducing users to diverse content. Despite the challenges of starting the app during a massive influx of users and while still working full-time and attending college, Raluca's determination and innovative vision led to the creation of Hive Social, filling the market demand for a more unique social media experience.
From a basic app to an engaging platform: The creator of Hive Social started with a simple app and gradually improved it through self-taught coding, eventually adding features like asks to make it a more enjoyable experience for users.
The creator of Hive Social started with a very basic version of the app and gradually added features through self-taught coding. The initial version was a far cry from the modern, aesthetically pleasing app we know today. Features like asks and polls were absent, and the design was not as polished. The creator learned to code using Swift and Xcode, following tutorials online. An early mistake was hard-coding everything instead of using a library, but this experience led to valuable learning. Today, Hive Social offers a more engaging platform with personal interaction through asks, making it an enjoyable experience for users.
From scratch to launch: The passion and dedication of Hive Social's founder: Passion and dedication can lead to remarkable achievements, even when faced with challenges and long hours.
Passion and dedication can lead to remarkable achievements, even within a short timeframe. The founder of Hive Social, Raluca Pop, shared her experience of coding the app from scratch during the summer, putting in long hours every day. Despite the lengthy process, she remained focused and passionate about her project, eventually launching Hive Social just in time for a user rush when Twitter was undergoing significant changes. This sudden influx of users presented challenges for the small team, but their hard work and determination paid off. The story serves as a reminder that when we're fully invested in our projects and ideas, we can overcome obstacles and make a meaningful impact.
Unexpected growth can strain a system, causing bugs and issues: Sudden massive growth can put a strain on a system, leading to unexpected bugs and issues, but it also highlights the potential demand for a new app.
Unexpected massive growth can put significant strain on a system, leading to bugs and issues. This was the experience of the team behind Hive when they gained over 150,000 new users overnight. The surge was due to the app going viral, possibly due to events on Twitter. The team was caught off guard, and the server was unable to handle the influx, resulting in functions like checking for duplicate usernames being down. This led to the creation of a bug with over a hundred duplicate Nicki Minaj accounts. Despite the challenges, the team was able to get the server back up and the user base continued to grow, eventually surpassing 2 million users. The experience proved that there was strong demand for a new app, even during uncertain times. Communities in fandom played a role in bringing in new users, as they were particularly excited about Hive.
Hive's Growth through Authentic Communities and Monetization Plans: Social media app Hive is growing through organic content in various communities, plans to monetize through live streaming, in-app purchases, and subscriptions, and aims to fairly share revenue with creators
Hive, a free social media app, has seen significant growth through various communities such as K-pop, gaming, beauty, cosplaying, and music. These communities have contributed to the app's popularity by engaging in raw and organic content. Hive plans to monetize the app through features like live streaming, in-app purchases, and subscriptions to support creators, who are a crucial part of the app's authentic creator economy. The app aims to provide a fair revenue share to creators, recognizing their importance as full-time content producers. In the next year, Hive plans to partner with brands and introduce features like hype streams and in-app subscriptions to further monetize the app and support its growing community of creators.
Exploring new revenue streams for Hive: Hive is pursuing subscription-based access, brand partnerships, and minimally invasive ads to enhance user experience and monetize the platform, while ensuring security and user experience are not compromised.
Hive, a social media platform, is exploring new revenue streams and partnerships to enhance user experience and monetize the platform. These include subscription-based access to exclusive content, brand partnerships, and minimally invasive ads. However, it's important to note that Hive faced temporary server deactivation due to security concerns, where private posts, messages, shared media, and even deleted DMs were at risk of being accessed by attackers. Despite this, Hive is now reintroducing brand partnerships and ads in a more controlled way, ensuring they meet high standards and do not disrupt the user experience. Overall, Hive aims to bring creators closer to their audience while generating revenue, ensuring the platform remains a valuable tool for both parties.
Security breaches can harm app reputation: Companies must prioritize app security and address vulnerabilities promptly to maintain user trust and prevent potential harm.
Security breaches can have severe consequences for apps and their users, including loss of trust and user base. In this case, Hive, a Berlin-based social media app, faced a two-week service disruption due to identified security risks. The app's founder, Raluca, explained that regaining users would come from partnerships with brands and influencers, as well as new features. However, the decision to take the app offline was made by a security company that discovered vulnerabilities, which they publicly disclosed before the issues were fixed. This action put users at risk and caused significant damage to the app's reputation. It's crucial for companies to prioritize security and address vulnerabilities promptly to maintain user trust and prevent potential harm.
Addressing reported security vulnerability leads to app downtime: Teams prioritize security over quick returns, causing temporary app downtime. Social media users express exhaustion and seek alternatives or improvements due to growing discontent.
Security vulnerabilities can lead to significant disruptions, even if no user data is actually stolen. In the case of Hive, the team made the decision to take the app offline to address a reported vulnerability and ensure the security of user data. Though this resulted in a delay in the app's functionality, the team prioritized security over a quick return. Additionally, the team is currently focusing on perfecting the mobile version of the app before developing a desktop version. The current state of social media is leading to growing discontent, with users expressing exhaustion and frustration with the platforms. The pressure to maintain a certain persona on apps like Instagram and the constant exposure to negative news and political discourse on Twitter are contributing factors. Major disruptions or subtle changes are expected in the social media landscape as users seek alternatives or demand improvements.
Creating a unique user experience in social media apps: To build a successful social media app, focus on a unique user experience, start without fear, and maintain a sense of humor during challenges and criticism.
Creating a successful social media app requires a unique and cohesive user experience, as well as the courage to start and the determination to overcome fear. The speaker, who has experience building a social media app called Hive, emphasizes the importance of starting and focusing on the app's growth, rather than being intimidated by competitors. They also mention the value of maintaining a sense of humor in the face of challenges and criticism. Hive sets itself apart by being a standalone app with carefully selected features and a focus on UI and user experience, aiming to deliver a more organic experience to users. For those aspiring to create their own platform, the speaker advises starting without fear and finding humor in the process.
Handling rumors with humor: Facing rumors with humor and not letting fear hold you back can help navigate through negative criticism and gain support from others
Facing rumors and negative criticism can be a challenging experience, but finding humor in the situation and not letting fear hold you back can help you navigate through it. The speaker, who faced rumors about being an AI or a Russian spy, responded with a TikTok video and found that it not only helped him deal with the stress but also gained him support from others. So, if you encounter similar situations, embrace the situation with a sense of humor and don't let fear hold you back. And who knows, you might even gain some new fans along the way! Additionally, the speaker expressed excitement for future episodes of the Vergecast, including an interview with the founder of the McRib locator. The show is produced by Andrew Marino and Liam James, and editorial direction is by Brooke Minters. Support for the show comes from Art Beets and Lyrics, a documentary about the Art Beets and Lyrics event on Hulu. Please remember to drink responsibly.
