Anonymous social app Fizz hits No. 1 in Saudi Arabia

Anonymous social app Fizz debuted in Saudi Arabia in the middle of March. Within 48 hours of its launch, the application reached No. 1 overall on the App Store charts in the country. Since its debut, users in Saudi Arabia have sent more than 1 million messages on the platform. The launch represents the first overseas test for the company as it attempts to expand its user base beyond its original student demographic.

The company was started in 2022 by Stanford dropouts Teddy Solomon and Ashton Cofer. After raising $40 million and launching on 700 college campuses, Fizz is now expanding beyond college campuses with a feature called Fizz Feed. This feature opens the platform to non-students through location-based communities. “We’ve always known that our big goal is to be a generational social product, rather than a college social app, and now we’re finally executing on it,” said Teddy Solomon, founder and CEO of Fizz. Solomon noted that the social media landscape in the region is booming, with high engagement on platforms such as Snapchat, WhatsApp, and TikTok.

However, operating in Saudi Arabia presents significant regulatory and political risks. The country remains an absolute monarchy, ruled by a royal family that suppresses free speech. For example, in 2024, the Saudi government sentenced Manahel al-Otaibi to 11 years in prison for the “terrorist offense” of tweeting about women’s rights and posting photos on Snapchat in which she was not wearing a traditional abaya, according to Amnesty International. Because of these conditions, the Saudi monarchy could monitor the app for offensive posts, demand content removal, or arrest users based on their posts.

Fizz has not received investment from any Saudi Arabian entities and has not communicated with any members of the Saudi government. When asked how the company would handle potential government demands for content removal or user monitoring, Solomon stated that they would address the issue when they reach that point. He expressed confidence in the company’s strict moderation guidelines, noting that they are moderating in a way that satisfies people in the region and abides by local rules.

Why it matters

Saudi Arabia serves as the first overseas test for Fizz’s ambition to evolve from a niche college app into a generational social product. To succeed, the company must navigate complex regional moderation and political risks in a market with strict speech controls.