Instagram Original Name | What Was Instagram Originally Called?

Instagram was launched in 2010 as a photo-sharing platform. But as years went by, the platform emerged as the most sought social media platform. While we currently know Instagram by the name of Instagram, it surely did not start like that. Let me tell you about Instagram Original Name, what was Instagram originally called, and a little about its history.

The history of Instagram is surely one for keeps and is considered one of the greatest Silicon Valley fairy tales. It only took eight weeks for software engineers and Instagram developers to launch the Instagram app and ever since there has been no looking back.

So, without further ado, let’s dig in to learn about Instagram’s Original Name and what was Instagram originally called.

What Was Instagram Originally Called?

Instagram was started by 27-year-old Stanford University graduate  Kevin Systrom. Although Kevin Systrom had no formal training in Computer Science or coding, he built a prototype of a web app called Burbn.

So, Instagram was originally called Burbn. The Burbn name for Instagram was inspired by the taste of fine whiskeys and bourbons. Soon, the Burbn app could allow users to check in, post their plans, and share photos, and became an instant hit.

The Instagram app was first launched on Oct. 6, 2010, and around 25,000 users downloaded and installed the app in one day. The app primarily focused on sharing photos, especially the ones taken from mobile devices.

Instagram a Photo-Sharing Application: Brief History

The history of Instagram is one for keeps, when Kevin Systrom developed Burbn, he presented his prototype to many capital ventures and gained seed funding of $500,000 quite instantly.

Kevin decided to focus on the app and hired a team. His first hire was a 25-year-old Mike Krieger who was also a Stanford graduate. Both Kevin and Krieger joined hands and decided to make Burbn a hit.

The main idea behind Burbn was pretty simple and that was photographs specifically taken on mobile devices. Both Kevin and Krieger studied leading apps in photography in depth to understand how they worked.

But they couldn’t find any app that focused on sharing photographs as a social media tool and they decided to reduce Burbn down to its photo, commenting, and liking functions.

At this point, they decided to change the name of Burbn to Instagram. Instagram came out from two words instant and telegram. 

Meta Acquired Instagram in 2012

With rising success, in March 2012, Instagram has around  27 million users and after the app was released on Android devices, it broke the record with more than one million downloads in less than one day.

It started in April 2012, when Facebook (now Meta) offered to acquire Instagram for about $1 billion in cash and stock; the main provision was that the company would remain independently managed. Finally, it hit the jackpot as Facebook moved forward and sealed the deal by acquiring it for $1 billion in cash and stock.

It is to be noted that former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey also showed interest in acquiring Instagram. According to reports, Twitter made an offer of around $500 million in stock to acquire Instagram, but Systrom declined the offer.

How Did Instagram Become So Successful?

Instagram’s main idea of sharing photos became quite a hit and it developed a serious user engagement for the app. Along with that the strong word of mouth also helped Instagram gain momentum.

A user-friendly interface, and the constant updates on Instagram with enhancing the widely liked features led to the success of Instagram in such a short span of time.

Despite constant criticisms over causing mental health issues, Instagram still leads the chart as the most sought platform by teenagers and young adults alike.

Wrapping Up

Instagram is known for its latest updates and user-friendly features. Every other day there is a new update from Instagram. But ever wondered about the history of Instagram. To know about Instagram Original Name and what was Instagram originally called, read the entire article and do share it with your friends.

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