{"id":69669,"date":"2026-07-15T18:26:16","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T09:26:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/?p=69669"},"modified":"2026-07-15T18:26:18","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T09:26:18","slug":"hiroyuki-hideaki-anno-and-gackts-last-human-made-social-network-in-the-ai-era-to-shut-down-after-only-6-months-we-failed-spectacularly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/hiroyuki-hideaki-anno-and-gackts-last-human-made-social-network-in-the-ai-era-to-shut-down-after-only-6-months-we-failed-spectacularly\/","title":{"rendered":"Hiroyuki, Hideaki Anno and GACKT\u2019s \u201clast human-made social network in the AI era\u201d to shut down after only 6 months. \u201cWe failed spectacularly\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It was announced on July 15 that Japanese social networking app <strong>POPOPO<\/strong> would end services on September 17, only six months after its launch. According to the company, this decision comes following \u201ca comprehensive review of the business environment and optimization prospects.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"ja\" dir=\"ltr\">\u3010\u91cd\u8981\u3011POPOPO\u30b5\u30fc\u30d3\u30b9\u7d42\u4e86\u306e\u304a\u77e5\u3089\u305b<br>\u300ePOPOPO\u300f\u306f\u30012026\u5e749\u670817\u65e5(\u6728)15:00\u3092\u3082\u3061\u307e\u3057\u3066\u3001\u30b5\u30fc\u30d3\u30b9\u306e\u63d0\u4f9b\u3092\u7d42\u4e86\u3055\u305b\u3066\u3044\u305f\u3060\u304f\u3053\u3068\u3068\u306a\u308a\u307e\u3057\u305f\u3002<br><br>POPOPO\u304c\u7686\u3055\u307e\u306b\u611b\u3055\u308c\u308b\u30b3\u30f3\u30c6\u30f3\u30c4\u3068\u306a\u308b\u3088\u3046\u52aa\u529b\u3057\u3066\u53c2\u308a\u307e\u3057\u305f\u304c\u3001\u3053\u306e\u3088\u3046\u306a\u3054\u5831\u544a\u3068\u306a\u308a\u307e\u3057\u305f\u3053\u3068\u3092\u5fc3\u3088\u308a\u304a\u8a6b\u3073\u7533\u3057\u4e0a\u3052\u307e\u3059\u3002\u2026<\/p>&mdash; POPOPO (@official_popopo) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/official_popopo\/status\/2077274495497424930?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 15, 2026<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">POPOPO, dubbed the \u201clast human-made social network in the AI era,\u201d made headlines for its mysterious premise and a notable celebrity backing. Specifically, Hiroyuki Nishimura, founder of the 2channel message board and current owner of 4chan, Neon Genesis Evangelion director Hideaki Anno, Dwango founder Nobuo Kawakami, and musician GACKT among other media personalities were appointed as directors of the company behind POPOPO, and were involved in the app\u2019s creation and promotion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"960\" height=\"540\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" src=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/20260715-69669-header-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-69673\" srcset=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/20260715-69669-header-1.jpg 960w, https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/20260715-69669-header-1-380x214.jpg 380w, https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/20260715-69669-header-1-768x432.jpg 768w\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The service itself is imagined as a free \u201cmetaverse\u201d video call app that lets users chat using virtual avatars, without requiring a camera or a virtual headset. Movements of the avatars automatically synchronize with the conversation, and instead of a classic \u201cfacetime\u201d format, where you have to directly face the person you\u2019re speaking with, POPOPO places your virtual characters in a dynamic cinematic scene with switching camera shots and perspectives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">POPOPO is intended both for personal use, like conversations between friends and family, and for live broadcasts and streaming. Judging by how the app was initially promoted, it seems like its creators wanted to turn it into a platform that could allow influencers, idols and celebrities to directly interact and talk with their audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While the initial response to POPOPO was huge (especially considering the rather \u201csurreal\u201d team of celebrities backing the project), it seems that the hype died out only a few months after its launch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"ja\" dir=\"ltr\">\uff08\u9577\u6587\u304a\u77e5\u3089\u305b\uff09<br>\u4eca\u5e743\u6708\u306b\u767a\u8868\u3057\u305fPOPOPO\u3067\u3059\u304c\u3001\u65e9\u304f\u3082\u30b5\u30fc\u30d3\u30b9\u3092\u505c\u6b62\u3059\u308b\u3053\u3068\u306b\u306a\u308a\u307e\u3057\u305f\u3002\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/wbBNwLkrgD\">https:\/\/t.co\/wbBNwLkrgD<\/a><\/p>&mdash; \u304b\u308f\u3093\u3054 (@gweoipfsd) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/gweoipfsd\/status\/2077287724713976037?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 15, 2026<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a recent X post, Kawakami, who also took on the role of the app\u2019s producer, shared his thoughts on the shutdown of POPOPO. While he had confidence in its premise as a \u201cnew style of human communication,\u201d naturally integrating it into the daily lives of modern people was a goal they ultimately couldn\u2019t achieve. \u201cIt\u2019s actually amazing how spectacularly we failed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Related articles:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><a href=\"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\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">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<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><a href=\"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\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">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<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>POPOPO will shut down on September 17.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":79,"featured_media":62817,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_gspb_post_css":"","autoblue_enabled":true,"autoblue_custom_message":"","autoblue_shares":[],"autoblue_post_url":"","autoblue_publish_document":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,65],"tags":[17,66],"class_list":["post-69669","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 v28.0 - 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