Video Gen Z longs for nostalgic era of minimal tech Influencer and Camp Social founder Liv Schreiber joins ‘America Reports’ to discuss the growing trend of Gen Z embracing a return to older technologies.
Unless you're between the ages of 25 and 40, you likely have no idea what I’m talking about, but for millennials, Vine was basically a precursor to TikTok, wherein creators would have a maximum of six seconds to put together a video conveying what they wanted to say.
It was a snapshot of a very specific slice of pop culture during the early-to-mid 2010s and delivered more memes per capita than any social media platform outside of Twitter.
Then, just as quickly as it came, it disappeared, making way for other brain-rot vessels like the aforementioned TikTok.
AUSTRALIA REMOVES 4.7M KIDS FROM SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS IN FIRST MONTH OF HISTORIC BAN
A woman types on a phone as social media algorithms influence trends like "slop" and shadowbanning, affecting what users see. (Jan Woitas/Picture Alliance)
That’s right, folks! According to the New York Post, Vine is back and better than ever before, and it’s all thanks to a relatively unlikely source.
"By bringing back Vine on a decentralized network, they are finally correcting every mistake," former Twitter CEO and co-founder Jack Dorsey said.
Though it won't be called Vine -- they're opting for Divine, clever -- it will still deliver the short-form video goodies it did during its heyday, this time in an AI-free format (how refreshing).
The app launched on Thursday and is available on both the App Store and Google Play, and, according to the Post, over 500,000 former creators, including stars like Lele Pons, JimmyHere, MightyDuck, and Jack & Jack, have already reclaimed their accounts.
A 12-year-old boy looks at his phone in Bath, England, on Feb. 9, 2025. The Australian Senate recently passed a law banning children under 16 from having social media accounts, with platforms like TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat, Reddit, X and Instagram facing potential multi-million-dollar fines for noncompliance. (Anna Barclay/Getty Images)
"We want social media that makes us feel happy," said Evan Henshaw-Plath, who runs Divine and was one of the original Twitter developers, "We need more of that joy. We need technology that makes us happy… When I give people the app and they start playing with it, they start giggling, they start laughing."
Henshaw-Plath went on to say that he wants people who spend their time on Divine to start "joy scrolling" instead of "doom scrolling."
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This might be my rose-tinted nostalgia goggles talking, but social media just felt simpler and happier during the days of Vine, so if Jack Dorsey and the boys can bring even a modicum of that happiness back to our lives, then count me in.
A man holds an iPhone showing social media apps including TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, Threads, Instagram, and X in Bath, England, on March 13, 2024. (Anna Barclay/Getty Images)
The fact that AI-generated content is banned from the platform feels like an added bonus, too.
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So, if you're feeling down today, just put on some Carly Rae Jepsen, dust off your Romney-Ryan 2012 shirt and download Divine.
Then you can forget all about just how far we've slid in the last dozen years, if only for a brief moment.
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