Historical
What Happened to Amino App? A Complete Timeline (2014-2025)
18 min read
December 9, 2024
From startup success story to corporate casualty. This is the complete history of Amino, how it captured millions of fans, what went wrong, and why it ultimately failed.
10 Years
Active
300M+
Downloads
17M
Peak Users
2.5M
Communities
The Complete Timeline
2014
The Beginning
- •Yin Wang and Ben Anderson found Narvii, Inc.
- •Launch first Amino community app focused on K-Pop
- •Concept: Create specialized apps for different fandoms
- •Initial funding secured
2015
Finding the Formula
- •Launch Amino Apps platform allowing multiple communities
- •Anime Amino becomes breakout hit
- •User base grows to several million
- •Model of community-specific features gains traction
2016
Explosive Growth
- •10 million monthly active users reached
- •Raise $19.2 million Series A funding
- •Thousands of communities created
- •Become go-to app for fandoms and creative communities
2017
Peak Success
- •17 million monthly active users (all-time peak)
- •2.5 million+ communities
- •Raise $45 million in funding
- •Coverage in major tech publications
- •Amino becomes household name among young creators
2018-2019
Early Warning Signs
- •User complaints about bugs increase
- •App updates become less frequent
- •Monetization through Amino+ and coins introduced
- •Some users report declining engagement
- •Content moderation challenges emerge
2020
Pandemic Year
- •Brief surge in users during lockdowns
- •Technical issues persist
- •Competition from Discord increases
- •Development pace continues to slow
2021
The MediaLab Acquisition
- •MediaLab acquires Amino from Narvii
- •Original founders exit
- •Immediate increase in advertising
- •Staff reductions reported
- •User community expresses concern
2022-2023
Rapid Decline
- •Bugs become endemic - chats fail, notifications broken
- •Customer support becomes virtually non-existent
- •No meaningful updates released
- •Users begin exodus to other platforms
- •Community leaders start contingency planning
2024
The End
- •App removed from Google Play Store
- •App removed from Apple App Store
- •Official shutdown announcement
- •Server access ends
- •10 years of communities lost
What We Can Learn from Amino's Story
Community platforms need consistent investment
Once MediaLab stopped investing in development, the decline was inevitable. Users notice neglect.
Aggressive monetization kills user experience
The push for ad revenue and premium features alienated the core user base who made Amino valuable.
Acquisitions can kill beloved products
MediaLab's acquisition changed Amino's priorities from users to profits, with predictable results.
Community spirit can survive platform death
The communities that made Amino special are still out there, finding new homes.
The Story Doesn't Have to End Here
Aminoka was built by people who loved Amino and want to see its community spirit live on. Join us.
Start Your New Chapter