What is Clubhouse?

Clubhouse made audio-only social networking mainstream. But it has come at a cost.

• If there is one technology trend that saw massive adoption during the pandemic, it was audio-only social networking.
• In April 2020, an app called Clubhouse, with its iPhone-only and invitation-only proposition, garnered global attention. People like Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg participated on it.
• Clubhouse started off as a live audio-only social media network, where users could create audio chatrooms or participate in ongoing audio conversations. No text. No video. Only audio.
• Presence of Silicon Valley royalty discussing important technology topics was a massive pull for the app in its initial heydeys.
• In fact, the buzz was so strong that Clubhouse invites were being sold on eBay for while, some going for hundreds of dollars.
• The quick growth of Clubhouse prompted major social networks such as Twitter and Facebook to take notes. Both launched their own live-audio offerings within no time.
• Over time, Clubhouse dropped its invitation-only aspect. It is now available on Android as well. But the massive growth is now a thing of the past.
• Clubhouse is also facing the kind of issues that one expected in a live setup: racism, misinformation, hate-speech, homophobia and more.
• With the rise of copycats around the audio social network space, is it a death knell for Clubhouse? Or is it too early to write it off? We explore in this reading.