Gab

Gab is a new type of social media site.

Unlike sites such as Facebook and Twitter, there is no censorship on Gab.

On Gab, you can say and post whatever you want. Its co-founder Andrew Torba says Gab is a place for “creators who believe in free speech, individual liberty and the free flow of information online.”

Call it the Wild West for 2017.

It’s a unique approach and it's created a huge buzz from some major media outlets.

In December 2016, for example, Politico pegged Gab as “Alt-right’s favored social network.” It’s also been mentioned in The New York Times, The Washington Post and on NPR.

Torba started Gab because he believes people are fed up with two aspects of social media: censorship, and an overabundance of advertising.

And when people become fed up, they flock to alternative sites where they can chat or read the news as they like.

For example, in November 2016, Breitbart.com reached nearly 50 million unique visitors.

Meanwhile, people are also fed up with too much advertising.

That's why they're using ad blockers. In fact, according to advertising resource PageFair, usage of ad blockers grew 30% in 2016. By the end of the year, there were 615 million devices blocking ads worldwide.

In response, Facebook and other social media giants created blockers for the ad blockers. It was a back-and-forth battle which brought the issue of advertising on social media into the spotlight.

But if Gab doesn't have advertising, how does it make money?

In March 2017, it launched a subscription-based service called GabPro. This is the premium version of Gab. It costs $5.99 a month, or about $60 per year.

On the free version, users have access to GabTV, which hosts live-streamed broadcasts and user-uploaded videos. There’s also Live Topics, where people comment on the day’s breaking news, and Gab Chat Rooms, where users engage in private chats.

For those who subscribe to GabPro, they can create specific lists of their favorite people based on common interests and create expanded private group chats.

As of June 2017, Gab has close to 200,000 free members, and nearly 2,000 paid subscribers.

Team Background

Ekrem Buyukkaya - Co-founder & CTO

Prior to Gab, Buyukkaya worked as a web developer with Digibase, an SEO consultant agency in Istanbul.

He also spent time as an engineer with AutomateAds.com, and as a lead developer at Adsuit.com.

Buyukkaya is proficient in multiple programming languages and attended Ozyegin University.

Andrew Torba - Co-founder & CEO

Prior to starting Gab, Torba was the co-founder of AutomateAds.com, a social media advertising start-up.

Utsav Sanduja - Chief Content Officer

Sanduja handles Gab’s press communications, global corporate affairs, risk analysis and production of GabTV.

Before coming to Gab, Sanduja worked as a research assistant at Appleton & Associates International Lawyers.

He also spent time as an assistant news director at Royal Bank of Canada.

Co-Investors