Why Clubhouse is special & deserves its $1B valuation:

It’s a new social graph, the talk graph, where you follow different people than on Twitter or Insta. It’s a more personal, unscripted way to get to know public figures and peers you care about.

Off-camera = intimacy. 1/

Clubhouse’s huge session times for some users signal a sticky and satisfying experience that could grow into a mainstream behavior.

There are emergent cultures and native celebrities forming, from talk shows to musicals to open mics to business pitch practice to games shows. 2/

Clubhouse’s initial, constrained user base is aspirational for early adopters, similar to Facebook’s Ivy schools and Twitter’s literati.

It’s derisking, proving over 9 months that it’s not a fad, and won’t implode as soon as it expands beyond Silicon Valley. 3/

Clubhouse is embracing creators rather than ignoring them at first like most social apps.

And despite flare-ups, it’s tackling moderation earlier too. 15 years in, Twitter still struggles there.

With so much time spent per active user, it has PLENTY of monetization options. 4/

Clubhouse is just genuinely fun. I’ve made friends there. How many apps can you say that about? (Ask if you need an invite!)

So congrats to @pdavison @rohanseth & team. Not for the valuation, but for making us feel less isolated. https://www.joinclubhouse.com/welcoming-more-voices