The social network Clubhouse was very popular during some of the darkest days of the pandemic. It’s a platform where members gather in rooms to listen to or participate in voice conversations, rather than typing or posting pictures. Clubhouse was founded in 2020 and took off 2021. But now, the platform’s explosive growth has slowed, and Clubhouse has announced big changes intended to help people navigate better, and find the conversations they want to be a part of. Tech expert Omar Gallaga told Texas Standard that Clubhouse is “breaking up” the service into areas where users with common interests can find each other.
Highlights from this segment:
– Many celebrities, including Oprah Winfrey and Elon Musk, were early Clubhouse users.
– Clubhouse became a combination “party line” for users looking to chat, and a conference space where groups meet to hear from experts or celebrities.
– Clubhouse growth has slowed, partly because of competition from other platforms, including Twitter. It’s also not clear whether audio-based social networks are destined to be successful in the long run.
