BuzzFeed may be getting serious about apps but its most recent app is anything but serious. The app is virtually useless for both the users and BuzzFeed itself, but that doesn’t detract from how amazing it is. Known as Cute or Not, this experimental new app employs a Tinder-esque swiping system that allows users to rate the cuteness of other users’ pets. Its a simple idea with a simple interface, but its adorable as all hell.
You might have heard we are working on a news app. You might have heard that we’ve recently acquired not one, but two app companies. You might have heard that our apps were recognized by both Apple and Google in their best apps of the year awards. And today, you might have heard we launched our first new app in years and that it’s called … wait for it… Cute or Not. “What the hell is going on?!” you ask. Well, stay with me and I’ll explain. Experimentation is one of the building blocks of BuzzFeed’s DNA. We are constantly learning and iterating off our experiments, and any experiment is successful if we can gather data and learn from it. We see the App Store as a platform, and it makes sense for us to be experimenting there the same way we experiment on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat etc.
