Grouphug: Turning WhatsApp Chats into Memes with AI
Grouphug, a new stealth-mode startup, is launching an app that generates memes from your WhatsApp group chats. Led by experienced European founder Felix Petersen (Amen, Plazes), the app offers a fun way to relive shared moments.
Currently, users can export their WhatsApp group chat text and let Grouphug create humorous images. However, this is just the beginning. The company plans to leverage generative AI to unlock more value from WhatsApp groups.
“We think we’ve cracked AI humor. For now, Grouphug will create jokes based on what happened in the group. We turn your WhatsApp chats into memes. But then we have other plans for it,” Petersen told TechCrunch. “There is this world of group chats where most of the things happening, like on Reddit or X, are conducted in public. But everything that’s in WhatsApp groups is not part of the public internet. That’s an opportunity.”
Grouphug has secured a €1.5 million (approximately $1.7 million) pre-seed round led by Blueyard VC, with participation from Tiny VC, Meta board member Charles Songhurst, Atlantic Labs, and others.
Petersen is joined by Joseph Djenandji, formerly of travel brand LostIn, and Matthew Balazsi, an AI and ML expert with over 10 years of experience.
Future Plans for Grouphug
While the meme generator is the initial offering, Grouphug aims to build a platform that utilizes AI to enhance WhatsApp group interactions. Details remain under wraps, but the potential for innovative features within the private messaging space is significant.
Learn more about Grouphug at grouphug.xyz.
Follow Felix Petersen on X (formerly Twitter).
