Gas, a positive social-media app, is climbing the ranks in the app store.
Key Details
- A new app called Gas is climbing to the top of Apple’s app store.
- The app is marketed for teenagers and allows them to “gas each other up” with poll-style compliments.
- The app is a big change from typical social-media apps and is performing well within its targeted demographic.
Why it’s news
The app allows users to choose their high school and vote on positive polls about their classmates. The polls are always good and are created in an attempt to give compliments to other students.
The app was created by the co-founder of TBH, an app of the same premise that was popular about five years ago. As TBH started climbing to the top, Facebook’s parent company Meta Platforms bought the app and shortly after shut it down.
As of last week, Gas was the most popular free iPhone app and the top social-media download in the Apple App Store. Gas is only available in a small number of states right now, as the app’s developers make sure the app doesn’t get overwhelmed with too many downloads, but is slowly rolling out to other states.
“To us, being at No. 1 is a vote of confidence that we’re doing something right for teens,” says co-creator of TBH and Gas developer Nikita Bier.
Security
In order to use the app location services must be turned on causing worry for some parents of teens using the app.
Bier reassures that the app only uses location services and collects other data to allow users to pick their school. He also adds that the data isn’t shared or stored on the app’s servers.
The app also has software that removes users it thinks could be lying on the app. If a user does not have any shared contacts from within the school then the user could be booted for lying about being a student.
Gas is expected to continue its popularity run as it rolls out to more states.
“So many people say it improves their self esteem, they get closer with friends, and that they feel loved,” Bier says.
