Memes rule the Internet. Since we are the generation that was raised on the Internet, of course, we use Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat to share them.
However, you might think twice about posting that hilarious meme on Facebook when you can already imagine your easily offended family member giving you those judging eyes from their computer screen. While you could use the millennial-friendly app Snapchat to share your funny moments, not every single one of your friends is a Snapchatter.
Now, there's an app that allows users to share memes, funny photos and videos directly with your squad, since they are the only ones who truly will get your humor. Created by Wellesley College students Olivia Joslin and Hannah Wei, after wanting to post a funny moment on a college campus and not knowing which app they should use, CliqBit is a social media platform dedicated to sharing inside jokes and other funny moments.
"We began to realize a big gap in social media ... there aren't great platforms for young generations to be themselves," Joslin told Tech Times. "Hardly anyone posts statuses on Facebook anymore (25 percent of teens dropped off of Facebook in 2015, according to Adweek). There are a number of reasons for its decline among generation Z and millennials, including the presence of parents/grandparents and an increased awareness of the problems that can come with the platform's permanence. There is a very small fraction of our age group on Twitter, which has evolved away from being personal and more into a news platform. Instagram is largely used for life's beautifully-captured moments and not so much for the casual/funny ones."
The app allows users to share all these not-suitable-for-family-members moments, as well as view their feeds to see all the hilarious posts made by their network of friends in the "Most Recent" or "Trending" tab.
"CliqBit is a social media platform for your funny, silly, not-so-serious side. Share clever thoughts, the wild photo from Friday night, the ridiculous things your professor says and those screen shots of funny texts," Joslin said. We're for the real you."
What makes the app unique is that users can either set their text, memes or stop-motion video posts to live on permanently or disappear Snapchat-style, with the option to have the moment disappear after five seconds or 48 hours — a feature Joslin said is "highly-desired by an upcoming generation of users who are more aware of digital permanence."
Users can discover new users by tapping on the fire icon on the upper right corner to see "Blazin' Bits," which are the hottest posts, search for users or connect with Facebook friends. Users can like a post by tapping on the "Cheers!" icon, and only the user who shared the post will be able to see how many people enjoyed it so they don't have to deal with the drama or competition of becoming popular on the platform.
So, what's behind the name?
"CliqBit is a really fitting name for us because we have 'cliqs' in the app, which are private groups that people can create and use to share inside jokes and silly moments within. Additionally, the word "bit" means a short comedy piece, which is great since we're a funny-focused, lighthearted app," Joslin said.
After about a year-long development, CliqBit has received traction and user engagement at MIT, BU, Northeastern University and other colleges in the Boston area. The creators have plans to tweak the app based on feedback to help it become popular among users outside of Boston.
CliqBit is available to download for free for iOS.
