Lapse – Photo-Sharing App Secures $30 Million In Series A Funding

Lapse, a photo-sharing app popular with Gen Z users, raises $30 million in an oversubscribed Series A funding round.

The app is inspired by the experience of disposable cameras, and its interface allows users to capture and share unedited photos with their friends.

The user interface emulates the use of a point-and-shoot film camera, and limits users’ ability to edit photos, with an upload function which encourages real-time posting.

Lapse’s popularity continues to grow since its 2021 launch, and it hit a new peak in 2023 after reaching the number one spot in the US and UK app stores.

Well-known investors have caught on to Lapse’s potential, with Greylock Partners and DST Global Partners co-leading its Series A funding. Greylock is a leading Silicon Valley-based VC firm and an early investor in Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Musical.ly (now TikTok), Roblox, and Discord.

Existing investors in Lapse include Google Ventures, Octopus Ventures and Speedinvest.

High-profile angel investors also involved in Lapse’s Series A round include: Naveen Gavini (former CPO at Pinterest), Soleio (software designer and investor), Nima Khajehnouri (former VP of Engineering at Snap Inc.), and Praveen Murugesan (former Director of Engineering at Uber).

The platform allows users to stay in the moment rather than focus on how content will be received, which has allowed it to grow a highly engaged user base.

Lapse’s mission is clearly resonates with young users, with its focus of creating an authentic platform to capture and share memories, without the pressure to curate a ‘highlight reel’ to compete for likes and followers – a pressure increasingly felt by users on other mainstream photo-sharing apps.

Co-founder Ben Silvertown’s inspiration for Lapse came from using a film camera whilst on a backpacking trip in Vietnam, after which he started working on creating the platform with his brother in London.

“We’re humbled that what we have built has resonated so strongly with so many. We’ve only scratched the surface of our grander vision: To build a new kind of social media,” shared Lapse Co-founder Dan Silvertown in a press release. “As we enter this next chapter, we are grateful to our partners for their ongoing support and belief in this company.”

To learn more about Lapse, visit its website here.