When a social app is working, it’s often clear in the data: how many people are using the app on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis and how is the network growth trending over time? But evaluating the success—or, in o...

Social Strikes Back is a series exploring the next generation of social networks and how they’re shaping the future of consumer tech. See more at a16z.com/social-strikes-back.

There are many competing visions for how we’ll build the Metaverse: a persistent, infinitely-scaling virtual space with its own economy and identity system. Facebook Horizon is an ambitious bet that it will be real...

Social Strikes Back is a series exploring the next generation of social networks and how they’re shaping the future of consumer tech. See more at a16z.com/social-strikes-back.

Social Strikes Back is a series exploring the next generation of social networks and how they’re shaping the future of consumer tech. See more at a16z.com/social-strikes-back.

Social Strikes Back is a series exploring the next generation of social networks and how they’re shaping the future of consumer tech. See more at a16z.com/social-strikes-back.

The intersection of social networks and finance—as well as shifting attitudes around what we share about money online—have given way to an ambitious new wave of financial products. Fintech partner Anish Acharya, formerly a product manager at Credit Karma, consumer partner D’Arcy Coolican (who himself is a former founder in this space), and host Lauren Murrow discuss why the “holy grail” of social plus finance is both so challenging and, potentially, so rewarding. This episode is part of Social Strikes Back, a new series exploring the next generation of social networks and how they’re shaping the future of consumer tech. See more at a16z.com/social-strikes-back.

True cloud-native games—those exclusive to and solely playable within the cloud—are poised to revolutionize gameplay and unlock new avenues of hyper-personalized storytelling and socializing. In this episode, Jade Raymond, VP of Stadia Games and Entertainment, and a16z partner Jonathan Lai, formerly of Riot Games and Tencent, talk about the challenges in building cloud-native games, their potential to upend prevailing business models and pricing, and most importantly, the spontaneous, social, super-shareable experiences that true cloud streaming will reveal. Through the rise of user-generated content, AI, and the cloud, they believe we're inching ever closer to the Metaverse. This episode is part of Social Strikes Back, a new series exploring the next generation of social networks and how they’re shaping the future of consumer tech. See more at a16z.com/social-strikes-back.