Jagat, a social network that is designed to get you out more with your friends instead of mindlessly scrolling on your phone, has surpassed 10 million users globally. The location-based social network, which launched earlier this year in March, wants to help people focus on real-life connections and make friends.
Key Takeaway
Jagat, a location-based social network, has surpassed 10 million users globally. The app focuses on real-life connections and aims to help people make friends and discover new activities around them through an interactive map interface.
Interactive Map Interface
The app, available on both iOS and Android, is essentially a social map for your friends and activities near you. Jagat features an interactive map interface that allows you to keep up with your friends in real-time and discover new people and activities around you. Jagat is somewhat similar to Snap-owned Zenly, a social map app that shut down last year.
Founding and Vision
The startup is based in Singapore and Indonesia, and was founded by Jagat President Barry Beagen and CEO Loy Xing Zhe. The pair met in December 2021 when Beagen was advising the Government of Indonesia on policies regarding the digital economy and Zhe was working on a GameFi product focused on web3, social, and gaming. Beagen says he and Zhe both had the idea of building a social network.
Creating Virtual Spaces
The pair decided to build a social network where users can create their own spaces and interact virtually with their avatars. Your social map is what you see when you open Jagat, as it’s where you see your friends’ locations in real-time. It’s also where you record the places that you have been to, and where you can tap on your friends’ avatars and send them a message, stickers or updates.
Future Development and Vision
The startup is currently building out a feature that aims to take on Facebook Groups by allowing users to organize local events and find people with similar interests. It’s also building a feature that lets you explore beyond your local community by allowing you to discover global communities. Beagen says most active users check the app around 3-4 times a day, and that most people want to find out where their close friends and loved ones are once they’re done with school or work.
