Giggles raises $1,234,567 for meme prediction market app

Giggles, a social media platform that combines meme trading with cryptocurrency, has raised $1,234,567 in a funding round. The investment was led by 1k(x), a venture capital firm.

The platform is currently operating as an invite-only beta. According to Jin, 450,000 users have signed up for the waitlist. The app allows users to post brainrot—a slang term for low-quality, viral internet content—and use aura points, an in-app currency, to invest in these videos. The startup plans to eventually transition from aura points to actual cryptocurrency, allowing users to trade based on the virality of content. Jin noted that anonymous posting allows users to share content more freely and authentically, contrasting it with platforms like Facebook where users are unlikely to post low-quality viral content. “The goal for us is to be the first crypto app where people spend more than, like, 30 minutes a day on it,” said Justin Jin, the founder of Giggles.

The platform, which currently employs eight people, began as a joke. Around 2023, Jin created a fake landing page and logo for the app, which attracted 100,000 visits in one day. This viral response prompted Jin and co-founder Edwin Wang to develop a functional application. Jin recalled that around 2023, when TikTok was rumored to face a ban, users were searching for alternative social media platforms.

The project launches amid broader skepticism regarding online misinformation and the founder’s previous ventures. For Jin’s previous company, Mediababy, the testimonials and press clippings on the site were dubious. Additionally, during the reporting of this story, concerns arose because some scammers have spoofed the TechCrunch domain to target founders. However, Jin argues that the prediction market model can help address systemic issues on modern platforms. He believes that bots are taking over existing social media platforms, and because the current advertising model relies on likes and impressions, botting will become a major issue. By allowing users to trade and predict what goes viral, Jin suggests the platform can naturally organize information.

Why it matters

The platform represents a shift toward using prediction markets to organize information and combat bot-driven content. By incentivizing users to bet on viral trends, Giggles attempts to address the proliferation of low-quality automated content on social media.