Jennifer Lowe

For software entrepreneur Christof Wittig, Hornet started off as a side project. Born out of a belief that the LGBTQ+ community deserved so much more than hook-up apps to find connection, Christof wanted to create a safe place that Queer people worldwide could call home. Today, Hornet, a gay social network, has a thriving community of 30 million users across the globe. It’s also become a larger force for good.

Is it possible to achieve fluency in English without ever living in an English-speaking region? Or will learning English continue to be reserved for those who can afford the best tutors? Buddy.ai co-founder, Ivan Crewkov, knew the answers to these questions could open up opportunities for millions of language learners globally.

It’s no secret that in mobile gaming – and the greater technology ecosystem – female founders are underappreciated and under-funded compared to their male counterparts. However, Deb is clear that she succeeds because she’s a woman, and not in spite of it.

When Cesar Kuriyama was getting ready to take a year off from work, he faced a dilemma: How to document his year in a consistent way that would be easy to revisit later. Out of this problem, he built 1 Second Everyday, an app that allows user to record one second of video every day. We spoke to the 1SE co-founder about his journey building the app, lessons from being an accidental entrepreneur, and his perspective on the promises – and perils – of raising venture capital.

There are two things that the team at game publisher AppQuantum believes in: Games can improve your mood and well-being, and a good game is worth playing. In this month’s Founders in Mobile, we talked with Evgeny Maurus, founder of AppQuantum, about the iterative journey he took to launch AppQuantum. We also dived into the most common pitfalls he sees indie game developers fall into, and his definition and philosophy for success.

In this month’s Founders in Mobile, we talked to Tim Raiter, co-founder of Hello Baby, about how he and his co-founder transitioned from building an app in Russia to Silicon Valley. Read the Q&A ahead to learn about the many challenges (and successes!) they experienced along the way.

In 2011, Vladimir Funtikov became known for building Drag Racing, a mobile gaming franchise. A breakout success, Drag Racing defined its category in the mobile app store. The road to success was far from easy, however. In this month’s Founders in Mobile, we talked to Vladimir about how he started a mobile gaming business, scaled through growing pains, and continues to generate winning games.

Even before the COVID-19 crisis struck, Dan recognized the need for more open spaces online. People needed to be able to have real conversations without fearing judgment, criticism, or insecurity from a lack of likes and comments. As the world changes rapidly, having someone to talk to matters more than ever before. Social networks can connect us – but also divide. This is how Dan is building a social platform that upends traditional business models, generates more kindness, and increases the potential for positive connection and well-being.

Clementine Lalande wanted to make a statement. As a woman in finance, consulting, and tech, Clementine was well-acquainted with learning to succeed in a man’s world. But when she quit consulting to join a dating app company, she learned just how entrenched misogyny can be. Fed up with a market where who you love and raise children with has been decided by young men held unaccountable in Silicon Valley’s frat bro culture, Clementine struck out on her own.

When John Shriber and Roman Zaks started Roomster in 2003, they were determined to grow a business where they were accountable only to their customers, team, and product – and not to external investors. 17 years later, Roomster is a worldwide leader in roommate matching, co-living, and shared housing. We talked with John to learn how he and Roman built Roomster into the growing business it is today and how they’re rethinking home sharing.

In a world where “community” has become a marketing buzzword, how did Radiate’s founders create a product that actually drives in-person connection? When Michael and Philip got together to build their app, the initial idea was to create a dating app for music festivals. However, it quickly became clear that the app needed to do more.

Plotaverse has been downloaded over 11 million times across mobile and desktop. It has used by notable names including Ariana Grande, GoPro, Kim Kardashian, and even PhotoShop. Plotagraph, their first app, has been named an App of the Year. Sascha herself has been recognized as a Forbes 30 Under 30. We sat down for an interview with Sascha to talk about out how she built Plotaverse and how her background as an artist allowed her to spot big opportunities in mobile and build a passionate community.

Alanna and Cristian are now the co-founders of Flipd, a digital wellness platform for Gen Z. Whether it’s preventing distractions during exam prep or providing tools for mindfulness, Flipd helps people develop more focus and track their time. Covered in TechCrunch, Wired, and the New York Times, Flipd is growing in a mobile market filled with productivity apps. However, the path there wasn’t easy.