Meet 19 startups in social networking, dating, and AI that investors have their eyes on
AI has venture capitalists back on the prowl for new consumer social startups.
"We're on the brink of another big consumer wave," Vanessa Larco, a former NEA partner, told Business Insider. She's launching a new consumer-focused venture firm called Premise.
Larco's eyeing consumer-focused AI startups like Midjourney (a generative AI image maker), Tolan (an AI companion platform), and Sitch (an AI-powered dating app). Larco said she is not an investor in Midjourney or Tolan, but is an angel investor in Sitch.
For some consumer startup founders, AI feels like a must-have in any pitch meeting.
"There's been no real crazy big raises in many consumer verticals unless it is a really strong gen AI angle," said Paul Warren, CEO of the book community app Margins.
But while it's true that VCs love an AI story, they've also been drawn to upstarts building loyal communities in a particular category, whether that's books, restaurants, or clothing.
"People are retreating away from the general platforms toward much smaller things, cozier things, much more niche-oriented things," Warren said.
BI asked nine VCs about what startups they are eyeing in consumer social tech in 2025. They highlighted new AI startups with a social layer, niche social networks, and apps that facilitate in-real-life (IRL) connection.
What startups are standing out?
Swsh, a Gen Z-focused photo-sharing app for events, is an example of a consumer social startup catching the attention of investors.
Three VCs — Rhian Horton at Stellation Capital (which invested in Swsh), as well as Derek Chu at FirstMark Capital and TJ Taylor at Hobart Ventures, who are not investors — named it as a consumer social startup to watch.
Founded in 2022 by Alexandra Debow, Weilyn Chong, and Nathan Ahn, the startup has been partnering with large music festivals like Rolling Loud and EDC Vegas to use its photo-album sharing tech. Swsh leverages AI to help users find photos of themselves from events, like parties or concerts. Users can also connect with people (like other party-goers) on the app in group chats.
Debow told BI that the startup has raised $3 million to date.
Meanwhile, Status, an app that uses AI to simulate a social media experience with fictional characters, was highlighted by two VCs: FirstMark's Chu and Amber Atherton at Patron, both of whom are not investors.
Status was cofounded by Fai Nur, Amit Bhatnagar, Pritesh Kadiwala, and Blossom Okonkwo. The founders went through Y Combinator in 2022 and launched the Status app in 2025. The app has over 2.5 million users, Nur told BI.
"We've been meeting a lot of founders who are building next-gen social networks that blend real-life people with agents," Atherton said about how some founders are utilizing AI.
Watching how much time young people spend gaming, Atherton also believes "the next generation of social networks will feel more like a game."
Here are 14 other startups investors have their eyes on:
AI is fueling a new wave of consumer-focused internet startups
Bible Chat is an AI chatbot trained on the Bible that allows users to ask questions about scripture and spirituality. The company said it has 25 million users and has raised $16 million to date. VCs interested in the startup include Fawzi Itani at Forerunner, which is not an investor. Itani pointed to the company's focus on religious content, and its plans to layer on community features for users and religious leaders, as a differentiator from other AI startups.
Doji is a virtual try-on platform that uses AI to make lifelike avatars of its users, who can then try on designer clothes. The startup recently announced it raised a $14 million seed funding round led by Thrive Capital. VCs interested in the startup include Cristina Apple Georgoulakis at Seven Seven Six, which invested in the startup.
Gigi is a dating and networking app that sells itself as "the AI who knows everyone. " It uses AI to learn about each user and connect them to relevant matches. VCs interested in the startup include Intuition VC's Hugo Amsellem, who invested in Gigi as an angel investor. (Amsellem is also in a relationship with Gigi's founder, Clara Gold.)
Lore is an AI-powered social platform focused on online fandoms, founded by ex-Headline investor Zehra Naqvi. While the platform is still in beta testing mode, it's already gotten the attention of VCs like Hobart Ventures' TJ Taylor, who is not an investor.
Series is an AI-powered professional networking startup cofounded by Yale students Nathaneo Johnson and Sean Hargrow in 2024. The startup uses AI agents to connect young professionals over text messages. VCs interested in the startup include Intuition VC, which is not an investor.
Niche social networks are gaining traction with users and investors
Cosmos is a Pinterest-style platform that describes itself as a "discovery engine for creatives" where users can save and share images. Cosmos cofounder Andy McCune previously cofounded Unfold, a photo-editing startup that was acquired by Squarespace. VCs interested in the startup include FirstMark Capital's Chu, who is not an investor.
Mansa is a streaming platform that features stories from creators of color. Beyond hosting videos, the company allows users to see what their friends and neighbors are watching. Mansa said its users streamed 3 million hours of content last year, with an average view time of 60 minutes per session. VCs interested in the startup include Marlon Nichols at MaC Venture Capital, which led the startup's seed investment round.
Margins is a social reading app built for the BookTok generation. The company launched in December and said it's grown to around 130,000 users. VCs interested in the startup include Rhian Horton at Stellation Capital, which is not an investor.
Perfectly Imperfect (also known as PI.FYI) is a social network for recommendations and is also a pop-culture newsletter that interviews musicians, actors, and other buzzy creatives. VCs interested in the startup include Kathryn Weinmann at FirstMark Capital, which is not an investor.
Spillt describes itself as a "Goodreads for recipes," where users can clip recipes from across the internet and see what their friends or food creators are saving. The company said it has over 300 recipe creators and that its users have clipped over 400,000 recipes in its app. VCs interested in the startup include FirstMark Capital's Weinmann (FirstMark is not an investor).
Then there are the apps that get people out into the real world
Beli is a restaurant tracking platform that allows users to keep tabs on where they, and their friends, have had meals. The company, which said it's raised roughly $12 million to date, launched in the summer of 2021. Cofounder Eliot Frost told BI the app has driven over 65 million restaurant ratings across 30,000 cities globally. VCs interested in the startup include FirstMark, which invested in Beli. FirstMark's Chu said he liked that Beli "gamifies IRL dining rankings and discovery," creating a network effect.
Kndrd is a social app designed to help women connect for in-real-life (IRL) meetups. The app has accepted more than 10,000 women and set up over 2,000 hangouts, founder Isabella Epstein told BI. VCs interested in the startup include Hobart Ventures, which is not an investor.
Partiful is an invitation app that allows users to see RSVPs from their peers and perform other tasks like sharing photos after an event. VCs interested in the startup include MaC Venture Capital, which is not an investor.
Pie is an IRL social platform founded by Bonobos' Andy Dunn. The app lets people discover plans happening near them in cities like Chicago, San Francisco, and Austin. VCs interested in the startup include Forerunner, which led Pie's $11.5 million Series A. The startup has raised a total of $24 million, according to the company.
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The thing that scares me the most about this current generation of students is that they aren't curious. My kids used to pepper me with questions about all kinds of things. They would get really excited when we switched to learning a new topic or when they learned a new word. Now, kids just give me blank stares. Half the time, when I ask them to repeat something I said, they can't. You teach them a phonics concept or a problem-solving strategy and ask them to apply it, and they look at you like you're from another universe. It got so bad with my current class of second graders that around the first week of October, I sat them all down and asked them what I could do to make learning fun and exciting. You know what they said? They said they wanted to be on their tablets. And it's not really surprising." "I commute via public transit and do my clothes at the local laundromat. I can't tell you how many times I've watched parents sitting next to their children, and while the child is zoned out, staring at something on YouTube, the mother is on her smartphone, scrolling Instagram. They don't talk to each other; they don't engage. Mom isn't pointing out landmarks on the street or asking the kid how their day was. They're not counting socks as they fold them or talking about the new store that's going in on the corner. Kids used to come in every morning, telling me about everything they did after school at the park, at their friend's house, and at their aunt's. Now, if they talk at all, they're talking to each other about what they saw on YouTube and the video game they played. My kids used to be excited to work in groups and learn together. Now, they're so busy squabbling they can't get anything done."—C., 42, New York "Kids used to have respect for authority and manners — and they were the norm, not just the exception. You rarely had to raise your voice. Just a look was enough to get the point across. Now, you can't even get their attention. Parents used to believe the teacher over the child, and the children (no matter the grade) were expected to toe the line. Now, parents ignore teachers and defend their children no matter how offensive their behavior. And yet, we are expected to teach more than we used to and get higher scores with less help and participation from students and parents than ever before. Teaching was different in the '80, that's for sure." "Kids today think they know it all and do not value the learning process. Why should they? The internet is at their fingertips. There's little value in creating opinions by researching facts to grow and change one's mind. As soon as kids see what they want to see, they run with it. It seems everyone is an 'expert' now. Prior to the rise of phones in schools, kids were better held accountable to each other and their actions in face-to-face interactions. Life demands weren't pulling family time apart, so parents were more engaged and willing to discuss school issues. Now, parents want to challenge everything but do nothing to help their children understand accountability for their learning and behaviors." "We are now embedded in a society where uneducated children who cannot think for themselves and oftentimes look for the easy way out are going to be parents themselves. Our school system, broken to begin with, will continue to fail at helping create an environment that ensures learning for all. Had I known where this was going in 1995 when I graduated, I would have never pursued this career. Our federal government won't fund nor create programs that prioritize the betterment of our youth for the good of our country."—Jean-Paul, 51, Washington "When I was teaching before the pandemic, kids would at least try if they didn't understand something or weren't confident. They'd at least put something down if there were a question on an assignment they weren't sure about. Sometimes it was a silly answer, but it was better than nothing! Now, my kids will just be like a deer in the headlights. If there's a question they don't understand, they don't even skip it and come back to it. They just give up. There are whole assignments they turn in blank! They're so afraid to be wrong that they don't even take chances." "Eloping from classrooms. I've been teaching for 30 years, and in the past few years, students feel they can just leave the room whenever they want. I could understand if it was a bathroom emergency, but they would leave because they didn't want to do the work, they couldn't use their phones, etc. Many of them will say curse words as they head out the door, too. I would still be grounded today if I had done that when I was in school." —Anonymous Lastly: "The burden of responsibility. This has shifted away from students and families and more toward teachers as more districts adopt policies that 'hold the child harmless.' This has created a culture where students are no longer held accountable for themselves, their behavior, learning, work output, and more! While teachers still hold some responsibility for these, the families and students seemingly have zero, and THAT'S the problem — that partnership has eroded. If a student misbehaves or does not know how to socialize positively, the parents expect us to teach life and social skills FOR them (as I've had parents tell me). They seem to be more concerned about being liked or being their child's friend. But kids no longer have consequences for poor grades or behavior, and while I think second chances are excellent, not everything in life gets a redo." If you're a longtime teacher, what are some differences you've noticed teaching kids now versus back then? Let us know in the comments, or you can anonymously submit your story using the form below!
