9GAG

9GAG is an online social media platform headquartered in Hong Kong, centered on the sharing of user-generated, humor-based visual content. Founded on April 11, 2008, by a team of five Hong Kong natives—Ray Chan, Chris Chan, Derek Chan, Marco Fung, and Brian Yu—the company emerged from a side project with an initial investment of about $1,270. The initial concept was to create a simple way to share funny pictures among friends, an alternative to email. The name "9GAG" is a nod to Cantonese, where it sounds like "gou gag," meaning to crack a joke.

The founding team, led by CEO Ray Chan, initially started 9GAG as a "Just for Fun" project to build their resumes for the 500 Startups accelerator program. Ray Chan, a law graduate from the University of Hong Kong, had previous experience as a TV anchor and in product management roles at companies like aNobii. After participating in 500 Startups and later Y Combinator, the founders ceased their other projects to focus solely on 9GAG as its user base grew significantly. This pivot proved successful, attracting seed funding totaling over $2.8 million from notable Silicon Valley venture capitalists, including True Ventures, Greycroft Partners, and angel investors like Chris Sacca and Kevin Rose.

9GAG's business model operates as a three-sided marketplace connecting content creators, readers, and advertisers. The primary source of revenue is advertising, including display ads, sponsored content, and native advertising integrated within the platform's content feed. The company leverages its large, engaged audience, which is predominantly male (68.47%) and between the ages of 25 and 34, to offer targeted advertising opportunities. Additional revenue streams include a premium subscription service called "9GAG Pro," which offers an ad-free experience, and the sale of branded merchandise through its own store.

The platform allows users to upload, share, and discover visual content such as memes, GIFs, and short videos. This user-generated content is organized through a voting system where users can upvote, downvote, and comment, influencing what becomes popular and trends on the site. Content is categorized using a tagging system to help users find posts related to specific topics. To manage the high volume of daily submissions, 9GAG employs a combination of user moderation, machine learning, and artificial intelligence to filter content and reduce spam. The service is accessible via its website and mobile applications for iOS and Android, which were launched in 2012.

Keywords: user-generated content, meme platform, social entertainment, viral media, digital advertising, online community, humor content, content aggregation, internet culture, Hong Kong startup, Ray Chan, Y Combinator alumnus, 500 Startups alumnus, visual content sharing, social media network, digital publishing, millennials, Gen Z audience, content monetization, native advertising