RIP Artifact

The news app struggled to compete internationally

Image credit: Image Creator from Microsoft Designer/DALL.E and Canva

Artifact, a news app developed by Instagram's co-founders, recently announced its closure due to challenges in gaining critical mass and expanding its user base beyond the U.S. Despite positive reception and innovative features, the app struggled to compete internationally and experienced a decline in downloads after its launch. The decision to shut down was attributed to the realization that the market opportunity did not justify continued investment.

Here are a few key points:

• Artifact initially built a dedicated community, but failed to sustain interest beyond the launch period. Data from Appfigures revealed around 444,000 downloads since its February 2023 launch, with a significant portion occurring at the outset.

• The app struggled internationally, with the U.S. accounting for 44% of downloads, indicating that the fame of its founders, Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger, may not have translated well outside the U.S.

• The app faced stiff competition, especially from SmartNews, and also contended with evolving news consumption patterns driven by AI, search engines, and chatbots. 

• Additionally, Artifact's expansion of features, such as link and text sharing, raised questions about its identity—whether it aimed to be a social news reading platform or a general social network.