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Talkomatic was one of the first chatrooms, allowing real-time conversations among multiple users on the PLATO system. -
Bulletin Board Systems (BBS) and Internet Relay Chat (IRC) allowed people to share messages and files before the web era. Both were considered the earliest known forms of social media. -
Connects users with past classmates and school communities. -
Often considered the first true social network. Users could create profiles and connect with friends. Amassed around one million users before being bought out for $125 million -
Early platform that gained popularity before the rise of Facebook. Allowed users to connect with friends, share content, and discover new connections. Eventually faded from prominence, though laid the groundwork for many modern social media platforms -
The rival to Myspace. Myspace featured customizable public profiles that were visible to anyone. Reached its peak in 2005 as the fifth most popular site in the US with 25 million users. -
Described as the "Hot or Not" of Harvard University, Mark Zuckerberg created Facemash in his dorm. The early version of Facebook. -
Following Facemash, Zuckerburg created "The Facebook" in 2004, which later would become just "Facebook" in 2005. Quickly became a global social media leader, with 1 million users by the end of 2005. -
Users can upload, share, and watch videos, setting the stage for video-first social media. -
Twitter allowed 140-character "tweets" and soon becomes key for real-time updates and news. Originally envisioned as a text message-based tool for sending updates between friends. -
The birth of the algorithmic news feed, creating scrollable, automatically refreshing social media as we now know it. -
In May 2007, YouTube introduced its partnership program, which allowed creators on the website to make money off of their videos through ads. Could be considered to mark the beginning of social media influencers. -
In 2007, David Karp launched Tumblr from his bedroom. Described as the combination of Twitter, YouTube and Wordpress, Tumblr is cited as the reason behind the rise in micro-blogging. -
Twitter's significance was defined by the hashtag (#). Proposed by Chris Messina, the hashtag rose to popularity during the California wildfires with the hashtag #SanDiegoFire. Hyperlink capabilities were later added. -
In July 2010, Instagram co-founder, Mike Krieger, posted an uncaptioned shot of a marina (one of the first Instagram photos to be published), launching the birth of visual storytelling on social media. -
Snapchat was created with a desire to create a platform where users could share moments without the fear of permanence. Allowed users to post content that would vanish after 24 hours. -
After reaching 1 billion users on Facebook, Zuckerburg purchases Instagram for $1 billion. -
Slack brought social media to the corporate world in a way LinkedIn didn’t. It offered workers a place to socialize online within corporations. -
Vine launched in 2013, bringing 6-second looping videos to the internet. Quickly spawned a distinct genre of internet humor that still resonates today. Twitter would buy the app for $30 billion soon after. -
Twitter proclaimed 2014 as the "Year of the Selfie" following Ellen DeGeneres's viral Oscar photo. The photo has been retweeted more than 2.5 million times, setting a Twitter record. -
The largest social acquisition ever ($19B), boosting global messaging dominance. -
Twitter officially discontinued Vine, leading to outcry from creators and fans of short-form video. -
Douyin, an app by ByteDance, was released outside of China under the name TikTok. Became widely popular in North America in 2019. Known for short-form video that is popular among the Gen-Z population. -
14 years after its inception, it was revealed that Facebook allowed a researcher from Cambridge Analytica (linked to President Donald Trump) to harvest data from 50 million users without their consent. Zuckerberg would go on to participate in five days of congressional hearings addressing data privacy. -
Facebook rebrands as Meta to focus on building the "metaverse," reflecting a shift toward VR, AR and immersive digital experiences. -
In a $44 billion deal, Twitter rebrands to X under Elon Musk's private ownership. Freedom of speech is emphasized in the acquisition. -
Concerns over data privacy and national security lead to debates and proposed legislation to ban TikTok in the U.S., marking a major turning point for the platform—and raising global questions about First Amendment rights and democratic control over digital speech. Did go dark for 12 hours before relighting their servers.