{"id":63426,"date":"2026-03-18T16:06:29","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T07:06:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/?p=63426"},"modified":"2026-03-18T16:06:33","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T07:06:33","slug":"4chan-owner-hiroyuki-hideaki-anno-and-gackt-reveal-details-of-their-last-human-made-social-network-in-the-ai-era-which-shadow-dropped-today","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/4chan-owner-hiroyuki-hideaki-anno-and-gackt-reveal-details-of-their-last-human-made-social-network-in-the-ai-era-which-shadow-dropped-today\/","title":{"rendered":"4chan owner Hiroyuki, Hideaki Anno and GACKT reveal details of their \u201clast human-made social network in the AI era,\u201d which shadow dropped today"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Last week, Japanese entrepreneur Hiroyuki Nishimura, known as the founder of the 2channel message board and current owner of 4chan, announced that he would be launching a new social network service called <a href=\"https:\/\/www.popopo.com\/ja\/\">POPOPO<\/a> with Evangelion director Hideaki Anno, Dwango founder Nobuo Kawakami and musician GACKT, alongside other notable media personalities. While <a href=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/4chan-owner-hiroyuki-evangelion-director-hideaki-anno-and-gackt-to-participate-in-humanitys-last-non-ai-made-social-network\/\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/4chan-owner-hiroyuki-evangelion-director-hideaki-anno-and-gackt-to-participate-in-humanitys-last-non-ai-made-social-network\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">at the time of announcement<\/a>, most details about the app were shrouded in mystery, in today\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=7Bd8I8NI15Q\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=7Bd8I8NI15Q\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">special live program<\/a> broadcast on YouTube, it was (rather unexpectedly) revealed that the app would launch on the same day. Additionally, Nishimura, Anno, Kawakami and GACKT have been appointed company directors of POPOPO.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"ja\" dir=\"ltr\">\uff3c\u30b5\u30fc\u30d3\u30b9\u958b\u59cb\u3057\u307e\u3057\u305f\ud83d\udce2\uff0f<br>\u30ab\u30e1\u30e9\u306e\u3044\u3089\u306a\u3044\u30c6\u30ec\u30d3\u96fb\u8a71\u300cPOPOPO\u300d<br><br>\ud83d\udcf2 \u30a2\u30d7\u30ea\u30c0\u30a6\u30f3\u30ed\u30fc\u30c9\u306f\u3053\u3061\u3089<br>App Store\uff1a<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/0Fq0TEU5Th\">https:\/\/t.co\/0Fq0TEU5Th<\/a><br>Google Play\uff1a<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/c6XrHo9r6p\">https:\/\/t.co\/c6XrHo9r6p<\/a><br><br>\ud83d\udd3b\u516c\u5f0f\u30b5\u30a4\u30c8<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ARcG9SYvuH\">https:\/\/t.co\/ARcG9SYvuH<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/hICnAAuFlC\">pic.twitter.com\/hICnAAuFlC<\/a><\/p>&mdash; POPOPO (@official_popopo) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/official_popopo\/status\/2034148263671246899?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">March 18, 2026<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Now that the cat\u2019s out of the bag, POPOPO is a \u201csmartphone metaverse\u201d video call app that lets users chat using virtual avatars. A big thing to note is that the app doesn\u2019t require having a camera (or for that matter, a virtual headset) to be used. Apparently, movements of the avatars automatically synchronize with the conversation. Furthermore, instead of a \u201cFacetime-style\u201d format, where you have to directly face the person you\u2019re speaking with, POPOPO places your virtual characters in a cinematic scene that switches between different camera shots as the conversation progresses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The app is intended for both personal use, like conversations between friends and family, and for livestreaming \u2013 meaning you can broadcast your conversations live in the style of a talk show. There is also the option to request to join other people\u2019s live broadcasts, which could be an opportunity (provided the app secures a wide enough audience) to talk directly to your favorite streamers, artists or idols.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While the app itself will be free, it seems like it will base its monetization model on cosmetics and avatars, or rather, \u201cHolosuits,\u201d as they are called on the official website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With Hideaki Anno becoming one of the directors, it comes as no surprise that POPOPO also announced an upcoming Evangelion collaboration. Though we\u2019re not yet sure what the collaboration might entail, it\u2019s safe to assume that Evangelion-inspired Holosuits or backgrounds will be added to the app somewhere along the line. Other than Evangelion, a Touhou Project and Strawberry Prince collab is also coming soon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Related articles: <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/japans-dlsite-launches-otaku-friendly-twitter-clone-and-its-already-becoming-a-haven-for-adult-themed-artwork\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Japan\u2019s DLsite launches \u201cotaku-friendly\u201d Twitter clone, and it\u2019s already becoming a haven for adult-themed artwork&nbsp;<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/japan-gets-new-pixiv-like-social-media-platform-for-artists-that-strictly-bans-ai-generated-images-creators-can-authenticate-work-as-hand-drawn\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Japan gets new&nbsp;Pixiv-like&nbsp;social media platform for artists&nbsp;that&nbsp;strictly&nbsp;bans&nbsp;AI-generated&nbsp;images.&nbsp;Creators can authenticate work as hand-drawn&nbsp;<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dubbed the \u201clast human-made social network in the AI era,\u201d smartphone metaverse video call app POPOPO launched today.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":79,"featured_media":63429,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_gspb_post_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3,65],"tags":[17,66],"class_list":["post-63426","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-nongaming-news","tag-japan-related-news","tag-non-gaming-news"],"blocksy_meta":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.2 - 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