Path

Path launched in 2010 as a reaction to the 'noise' of Facebook. Founder Dave Morin (an early Facebook executive) wanted to create a high-quality, intimate space. The app was famously beautiful, pioneering the 'plus button' menu animation that was later copied by hundreds of other apps. It was the 'anti-social' social network—a place where you could be yourself because only your inner circle was watching. The 'Dunbar's Number' Bet Path's core hook was a limit of 50 friends (later raised to 150), based on 'Dunbar's Number'—the theoretical limit to the number of people with whom one can maintain stable social relationships. This created an aura of exclusivity. However, it also meant that if your three best friends weren't active on Path, the app was a ghost town. Unlike Instagram, which allowed you to follow strangers and celebrities to keep the feed fresh, Path was entirely dependent on your real-life friends being active content creators. The Privacy Blow In 2012, a developer discovered that Path was uploading unencrypted contact lists from users' phones to its servers. This was a massive scandal for a company whose entire brand was built on 'privacy' and 'intimacy.' Although Morin apologized and the company pivoted to a 'privacy-first' model, the damage was done. The FTC investigation that followed put the company under a 20-year oversight program, significantly slowing down their ability to innovate. The Final Sunset After years of stagnating in the U.S., Path found a surprising second life in Indonesia, where it remained popular for several years. This prompted the 2015 acquisition by Daum Kakao. However, even in Southeast Asia, the rise of WhatsApp groups and Instagram Stories eventually rendered Path's niche obsolete. On September 17, 2018, Path tweeted its final announcement: 'It is with deep regret to announce that Path will be stopping its service.' By November, the servers were dark, marking the end of the most famous attempt to build a 'small' social network.