The Bitmoji killer’s new app raised $10M

Today next-gen Bitmoji competitor, Genies, released a new mobile app to the world, incorporating a ton of new features based on the feedback from the 1M(!) users who downloaded Genies earlier this year during a three-month beta. 🎉

The company also released their SDK a few weeks ago, which has already generated several million dollars in revenue.

The details

With the new app, users create Genie clones of themselves via "Wheels" to select from over a million different combinations of skin tone, eye color, hair style, clothing and accessories. Unlike other emoji apps — where avatars all virtually look the same — Genies are all unique in both physical appearance and personality.

Here's where it gets super interesting: Your Genies can communicate with each other. 😯

Scientists and engineers at Genies studied hundreds of millions of user chats to develop an algorithm that detects over 180 small mood changes. Using keyword and sentiment analysis, Genies can act out things you say in real-time. Genies can also communicate with each other in groups of up to six people, and be used across iMessage, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, to name a few.

A brief history of Genies

Last December, Genies came out of stealth with a beta app to deliver the most buzzworthy stories of the day to users alongside an avatar that does something related to the news. At the time, the startup was valued at $100M from top investors. 😳

Some immediate reactions on Product Hunt:

"So cool! A Genie could react to news that Elon Musk’s SpaceX landed its Falcon 9 rocket with an avatar shooting into space 🚀🌌" — Niv

"As a 17 year old, I can see this spreading like wildfire in high school and college campuses around the country." — Sameer

"Genies might be a preview of the future of media. At least, this is probably what their investors (including NEA, Foundation Capital, CAA, Trinity Ventures, Lerer Hippeau, and Maveron) are hoping for." - Ryan

Today, the company disclosed an additional $10M in a second round of funding, bringing its total capital raised to $25M.

Genies is backed by an all-star lineup of investors, including: NEA, BoxGroup, Lerer Hippeau, CAA Ventures, Trinity Ventures, Foundation Capital, and many others. Celebrities have also invested, including Russell Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony, Joe Montana, Shawn Mendes, A$AP Rocky, 50 Cent, The Chainsmokers, among others. 💸

What's next

Genies also announced a partnership with its first global advertiser, Gucci, for users who want to dress their avatars. 👠

Today’s Daily Digest was crafted by Product Hunt and sponsored by our friends at Genies.

Check out Genies

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