Clubhouse finally has an Android app that you can download from the Play Store – you live in the US but provided. The voice-based social network launched its beta Android app in the Play Store for users in the United States on Sunday, saying it would gradually make the new app available in other English-speaking countries and then in other parts of the world.
Clubhouse began developing the Android app earlier this year and began testing the beta version externally this month. At a town hall startup on Sunday, the startup reported that availability on Android is the most requested product feature. The social network, whose latest fundraiser is valued at about $4 billion, was launched last year as an iPhone-only app. The app quickly gained popularity last year, attracting a number of high-profile celebrities, politicians, investors and entrepreneurs.
“Over the next few weeks, our plan is to gather feedback from the community, fix any problems we see, and work on adding a few final features, such as payment and club building before expanding it further,” the team wrote. As Clubhouse struggles to sustain its growth – data from mobile insights companies, including AppMagic, show that Clubhouse installs have declined sharply in recent months – the Android app could prove important in encouraging the spread of startups around the world.
The launch of Clubhouse on Android comes at a time when several technology giants, including Facebook, Twitter, Discord, Spotify, Reddit, and Microsoft’s LinkedIn, have launched similar offers – or announced plans to do so. Clubhouse could potentially – on paper – supercharge its growth by allowing a user to join the service without invitation. The startup, however, said retaining the waitlist and invitation system was part of its efforts to “keep growth measurable” (the clubhouse has faced several moderate challenges in recent months).
The Clubhouse of the Clubhouse, also known as Space, has debuted as one of the biggest competitors in the 16Z and Tiger Global-back-startups. Earlier Sunday, the founder of a high-profile Indian startup hosted unplanned Twitter spaces on Android, for example, which attracted hundreds of listeners in a matter of minutes. “As we head into the summer and expand the backend, we plan to start opening up even more, welcoming millions more from the iOS waitlist, expanding language support and adding more accessibility features for people around the world to experience.” Clubhouse in a way that makes them feel indigenous, “the Clubhouse team wrote.
Clubhouse’s Beta Android app currently lacks many features such as the ability to follow a topic, translate applications, localize, create or manage a club, link to twitter and Instagram profiles, make payments as well as change club profile names or usernames. “With Android, we believe Clubhouse will feel more complete,” read the blog post.
