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WeAre8 is a social media platform that directly shares advertising revenue with users, creators, and charitable causes. It employs social technology and a centralized wallet to redistribute financial benefits, establishing an equitable digital economy where value returns to the community, not solely to tech giants. This approach aims to transform online engagement into a mechanism for collective good.
Founded in 2012 by serial tech entrepreneur Zoe Kalar, WeAre8 emerged from observing traditional social media's negative impacts. Kalar noted how platforms fostered isolation, division, and exploitation. Her insight was to re-architect social media, eliminating hate and empowering individuals for collective action and global good, thereby addressing systemic issues within the digital landscape.
WeAre8 serves a diverse user base, including individuals, creators, and mission-aligned organizations. Its vision unites a large global community to collectively fund critical humanitarian projects, like providing clean water or enhancing educational access. The company aims to build a platform where users actively contribute to profound societal change, fostering a more responsible digital future.
WeAre8 has raised $22.4M across 4 funding rounds.
WeAre8 has raised $22.4M in total across 4 funding rounds.
WeAre8 has raised $22.4M in total across 4 funding rounds.
WeAre8's investors include Channel 4 Ventures, AJ Pritchard, Clare Balding, Harrison Osterfield, Rio Ferdinand, Ugo Monye, UKTV Ventures, John Meacock, Channel 4.
WeAre8 has raised $22.4M across 4 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $2.0M Other Equity in June 2022.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 1, 2022 | $2M Venture Round | Channel 4 Ventures | AJ Pritchard, Clare Balding, Harrison Osterfield, RIO Ferdinand, UGO Monye | Announced |
| Apr 21, 2022 | $1.2M Venture Round | Uktv Ventures | — | Announced |
| Mar 21, 2022 | $15M Series B | — | John Meacock, Channel 4 | Announced |
| Dec 8, 2014 | $4.2M Seed | — | — | Announced |
WeAre8 is a social media platform that reimagines online interaction by prioritizing positivity, hate-free environments, and social impact through its advertising model. Users connect with friends, share content, follow creators, and earn rewards by opting in to watch video ads, with 60% of ad revenue shared back to users, charities, creators, and climate projects via a centralized wallet.[1][2][3][5] It serves individuals seeking authentic connections and social change, brands wanting high-ROI ad distribution with positive impact, and nonprofits/climate initiatives, solving problems like toxic algorithms, forced ads, anonymity-driven hate, and unequal ad revenue distribution in traditional social media.[1][3][4][5] Growth includes expansion to the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Greece; 2023 impacts like $423,671 to charities, 18,000+ trees planted; and B Corp certification with an 89.8 impact score.[1][2][5]
WeAre8 was founded by Sue Fennessy (also referenced as Zoe Kalar in some contexts), a serial tech entrepreneur with 35 years of experience, including building four transformational companies and creating the world's first Generative AI media buying engine after leading NY-based media data firm Standard Media Index.[3][5] The idea emerged from Fennessy's mission to transform social media by eliminating anonymity, hate, and toxic algorithms while redirecting ad capital flows from big tech giants to people, publishers, nonprofits, and planet projects.[3][5] Early traction built on this vision: certified as a B Corp in December 2020, launched in key markets, released its 2023 Impact Wrap highlighting collective community achievements, and joined the Inspired Internet Pledge in November 2023 as a hate-free alternative.[1][2][4][5]
WeAre8 rides the wave of ethical social media and digital wellness trends, countering Big Tech's toxicity amid rising demands for hate-free, purpose-driven platforms—exemplified by its Inspired Internet Pledge alignment and Digital Wellness Lab support.[4][5] Timing is ideal with growing ad fatigue, creator economy expansion, and climate/social impact investing; market forces like B Corp appeal and opt-in models favor it by capturing redirected digital ad spend (aiming for 10% globally via 80M users).[1][2][4] It influences the ecosystem by pioneering revenue-sharing ad tech, fostering prosocial AI, and uniting brands/people/charities, potentially scaling to fund massive initiatives like water crises or child education.[3][4]
WeAre8 is positioned to grow as a "people's platform" by scaling its US launch and global user base toward 320M (4% of world population) for transformative impact, leveraging AI innovations from founder expertise.[1][3] Trends like AI-driven positivity, wellness pledges, and sustainable ad models will propel it, evolving influence from niche disruptor to mainstream alternative challenging ad monopolies. With proven 2023 momentum, expect expanded creator tools, deeper climate partnerships, and potential acquisitions in ethical tech—ultimately shifting Big Tech power dynamics as Fennessy's vision unites communities for scalable good.[1][3][5]
