How Alexis Barreyat Sold BeReal to Voodoo for $537,000,000

Mar 23, 2025

BeReal

BeReal is a social media app that prompts users to share unfiltered, real-life photos once a day at a random time using both their front and back cameras.

Exit: $537,000,000

Buyer: Voodoo

Date: 11/06/2024

Founder’s Backstory
Launch
Traction & KPI
Exit
The Buyer
Currently working on
Connect

1. Who is Alexis Barreyat?

Alexis Barreyat was born in September 1995 in France.

He is the founder of BeReal, a French social networking app released in 2020 that encourages users to share unfiltered photos of their daily lives. He sold BeReal to Voodoo for €500 million in June 2024.

Alexis is currently transitioning out of his role at BeReal following the acquisition.

2. What did Alexis do before launching BeReal that contributed to his success?

Background in Media and Technology

Studied at École des Nouvelles Images:
- Alexis Barreyat attended École des Nouvelles Images, a prestigious French school specializing in digital media, visual arts, and technology.
- This education gave him a strong foundation in storytelling, user engagement, and digital product design.

Experience in the Action Sports and Tech Industry

Worked at GoPro as a Video Producer:
- Before launching his own project, Barreyat worked at GoPro, where he was responsible for capturing and curating extreme sports content.
- His role exposed him to social media trends, user-generated content, and the mechanics of viral marketing.

Understanding Social Media Fatigue and Authenticity

Saw Firsthand How Social Media Content Was Staged:
- While working with influencers and athletes at GoPro, Barreyat noticed how curated and artificial social media content had become.
- This realization sparked his interest in creating a platform that prioritized real, unfiltered moments over staged content.

3. How did Alexis come to launch BeReal?

Alexis Barreyat started his career in media and technology, working as a video producer at GoPro, where he observed how social media encouraged highly curated and polished content. He noticed that people were more focused on creating the perfect image rather than sharing authentic moments.

Wanting to offer an alternative to the heavily edited nature of existing platforms, he began developing BeReal in 2019.

The app was designed to encourage spontaneity by prompting users to take a photo at a random time each day using both their front and back cameras. With no filters, likes, or follower counts, BeReal aimed to redefine social media by promoting genuine interactions and real-life moments.

4.What were the key milestones reached by BeReal?

Growth

2020: BeReal was founded by Alexis Barreyat and Kévin Perreau.
Early 2022: The app gained widespread popularity, particularly on college campuses, partly due to a paid ambassador program.
August 2022: BeReal reached over 10 million daily active users and 21.6 million monthly active users.
February 2023: The platform grew to 13 million daily active users and 47.8 million monthly active users.

Funding

June 2021: Secured a $30 million funding round led by Andreessen Horowitz and Accel.
May 2022: Raised $85 million in a funding round led by DST Global, increasing its valuation to approximately $600 million.

Strategic Developments

July 2022: Topped Apple’s free app list in the iOS App Store, maintaining the position until September 2022.
December 2022: Introduced the “Recap” feature, allowing users to review their yearly content.
Early 2024: Faced challenges with declining user engagement, leading to strategic shifts, including allowing celebrities and brands to have official accounts and introducing advertisements.

5. What were BeReal KPI right before selling?

Daily Active Users (DAU): Approximately 6 million, down from a peak of 15 million in October 2022.
Monthly Active Users (MAU): Approximately 20 million.
Geographical Presence: Strong user bases in the United States, Japan, and France.
Employee Count: Approximately 93 employees as of 2024.

6. The Exit

On June 11, 2024, BeReal got acquired by Voodoo for €500,000,000.

The deal was Voodoo’s move into social networking, leveraging its expertise in mobile apps and games to scale BeReal’s user base and engagement.

7. How did Alexis decide to sell BeReal to Voodoo?

BeReal had gained massive popularity, surpassing 40 million active users, but faced challenges in sustaining engagement and monetization. Seeing the need for long-term stability and growth, Alexis Barreyat and his team began considering strategic options, including potential partnerships and acquisitions.

In April 2024, Voodoo, a leading mobile app and gaming company, expressed interest in acquiring BeReal to expand its social media portfolio. Voodoo made an offer of €500,000,000, ensuring that BeReal would maintain its brand identity while benefiting from Voodoo’s expertise in app growth and monetization.

The opportunity to scale BeReal more effectively, while securing its future in a competitive market, ultimately convinced Alexis to accept the deal.

8. The Buyer

Voodoo is a leading French mobile apps and games publisher, founded in 2013 by Alexandre Yazdi and Laurent Ritter.

The company has achieved over 7 billion downloads worldwide and maintains a robust portfolio of popular titles such as Helix Jump, Mob Control, and Block Jam 3D.

In June 2024, Voodoo acquired BeReal, a social networking app focused on authenticity, for €500 million.

At the time of the acquisition, Voodoo employed approximately 800 people and had over 150 million active users across its various applications. The company generated approximately $600 million in revenue in 2023, with a strong presence in mobile gaming and social media.

9. Why did they acquire BeReal?

Voodoo acquired BeReal for several strategic reasons:

Diversifying into Social Media: Traditionally known for mobile games, Voodoo sought to expand into the social media landscape. Acquiring BeReal, a platform with over 40 million active users, allowed Voodoo to diversify its portfolio and establish a significant presence in the social networking domain.
Leveraging User Engagement: BeReal’s unique approach to fostering authenticity resonated particularly with Gen Z users, leading to high engagement levels. Integrating such a platform provided Voodoo with access to a dedicated user base, presenting opportunities for cross-promotional strategies and enhanced user retention across its app ecosystem.
Enhancing Monetization Strategies: Despite its large user base, BeReal had not yet implemented significant monetization strategies. Voodoo’s expertise in mobile app monetization positioned it to introduce effective revenue models to BeReal, transforming user engagement into sustainable profitability.
Strengthening Competitive Position: The acquisition enabled Voodoo to compete more effectively with other tech companies by broadening its offerings beyond gaming into social media, thereby appealing to a wider audience and increasing its market share.
Through this acquisition, Voodoo aimed to capitalize on BeReal’s popularity and user engagement to diversify its offerings, enhance monetization, and strengthen its position in the mobile app industry.

10. What were the key factors that led to Voodoo acquiring BeReal for €500 million?

Authenticity-Driven User Engagement

BeReal’s unique approach of prompting users to share unfiltered photos within a two-minute window fostered genuine interactions, resonating with users seeking authenticity in social media.

Rapid User Growth and Market Penetration

Launched in 2019, BeReal quickly amassed over 40 million active users, becoming one of the most popular social networks in key markets like the USA, Japan, and France.

Synergistic Alignment with Voodoo’s Expertise

Voodoo’s proficiency in scaling mobile applications and its extensive user base provided an opportunity to enhance BeReal’s growth trajectory, making the acquisition strategically beneficial.

Expansion into Social Networking

For Voodoo, acquiring BeReal represented a strategic move to diversify beyond gaming into the social networking domain, leveraging BeReal’s established user base and brand recognition.

Leadership Transition and Vision Alignment

The planned leadership transition, with Aymeric Roffé taking over as CEO, ensured continuity and aligned with Voodoo’s vision to scale BeReal into an iconic platform for authenticity.

11. What is Alexis currently working on?

Following the acquisition, Alexis stepped down as CEO after a transition period, with Aymeric Roffé, former CEO of Voodoo’s social app Wizz, taking over the role. As of now, specific details about Alexis’s current endeavors post-BeReal have not been publicly disclosed.