Thirteen recently launched social media networks to explore

In the ever-evolving digital landscape, a new wave of social networks has emerged, each offering unique features and catering to specific audiences. Here's a rundown of some of the latest entrants in the social media sphere.

BeReal (https://bereal.com/), released in January 2020, is an anonymous social network for college students. With over 40 million users, the app allows users to join private school communities for communication, where they can share posts anonymously. BeReal also offers an integrated online marketplace for students to buy and sell items on campus.

Launched in March 2020, Lapse (https://lapseapp.com/) is an innovative app that turns your iPhone into a disposable camera. The app, which has nearly half a million downloads worldwide, adds a vintage filter to photos taken after a 1 to 3-hour wait, giving them a unique, nostalgic look.

Yik Yak (https://yikyak.com/), released in August 2021, is a pseudonymous social media platform popular among college students. Yik Yak is designed for location-specific sharing, enabling users to share messages within a five-mile radius.

Threads (https://www.threads.net/), released in July 2023, is a new social media platform from Meta focused on sharing text updates. The app has amassed a user base of 38.29 million.

Ten Ten (https://tenten.app/), released in September 2022, is a walkie-talkie app designed for teen audiences to send voice messages to their close friends. Since its release, it has hit over 21 million downloads.

Noplace (https://www.thenoplace.com/), released in July 2024, is a social media platform aimed at a Gen Z audience and described as a "mashup of Twitter and Myspace for Gen Z". Noplace offers customized profiles and two feeds, one global and one personalized with friends only.

Coverstar is a safe alternative to TikTok, consistently monitoring content to ensure no explicit or dangerous content is allowed, and it doesn't support direct messages for safety reasons.

Bluesky (https://bluesky.social/) is a text-based social media platform, considered as an alternative to Twitter. Posts on Bluesky have a limit of 300 words and can include pictures.

Lemon8 is a photo-centric social media platform from Bytedance, the parent company of TikTok. With elements of Pinterest and Instagram, Lemon8 markets itself as a "lifestyle content community".

Funding for these platforms varies, with BeReal, Lemon8, and Coverstar receiving $41.5 million, $42.4 million, and $23 million respectively. BeReal is owned by ByteDance, the company behind TikTok.

All these platforms have their headquarters in various locations, including Palo Alto, California, Seattle, Washington, Berkley, California, London, United Kingdom, and Singapore. The surge in new social networks in Germany in 2025 is largely driven by growing demand for alternatives emphasizing privacy, niche communities, and resistance to dominant global platforms. The founders of Noplace, Coverstar, and Bluesky are not publicly detailed in the available sources.

Lastly, Substack Notes (https://substack.com/notes) is not a social media platform per se, but a platform for writers to share their thoughts and ideas with their subscribers.

This overview provides a snapshot of the latest social networks, each offering unique features and catering to specific audiences. As the digital landscape continues to evolve, it will be interesting to see how these platforms adapt and grow.