Favorited, the new TikTok alternative Livestream app, gets support from a16z

This month, the drama briefly took place on major social media platforms like TikTok Blacked out in the US before a quick return. Instagram recently faced a backlash after finishing third-party fact-checking software.

At the same time, startups like it Favorites attracting the attention of investors, creators and audiences. On Wednesday, the live streaming app announced a $1.3 million pre-seed funding round.

Favorites is very similar to TikTok Live in that it allows creators to interact with their followers in real-time. Key features include prizes, interactive games, streaks, leaderboards, and more. includes Gifting works similarly to TikTok Live, allowing viewers to send virtual gifts during a live stream. These gifts are bought with real money coins.

One of the notable features of Favorites is its competitive 70/30 revenue split for creators, which may be more favorable than TikTok, which receives around 50%. Users need at least 100 followers to start their favorite stream, but anyone can join existing streams. Within these streams, they can participate in “battles” and collaborations, which can help them promote themselves and gain new followers.

Favorited was founded last year by David Tesler and Zach Ferraro. Tesler is the creator of Sendit, an anonymous question-and-answer app, while Ferraro’s experience includes working with companies such as Curiosity.com, Famous Birthdays and Fourthwall. The duo said they are committed to gamifying live streaming, believing the future of content is interactive and collaborative.

“Real human interaction is synchronous, real-time and face-to-face, and our platform enables that at scale,” Ferraro told TechCrunch. “I think we’re nearing the end of the apocalypse, and we want to start the ‘real social’ age.”

The latest funding round comes amid fierce competition various programs trying to make money from live streaming. What notthe platform, where users can sell items via live streams, recently raised $265 million, bringing its valuation to an impressive $4.97 billion. RedNoteThe Chinese alternative, which offers live streaming, topped the list of free apps in the US App Store last week.

It remains to be seen whether Favorited can keep up with the mainstream platforms, but it is performing well and has already attracted impressive investors in a competitive market. The app currently boasts over 750,000 users, and users like Jaysingz (a famous TikToker) reportedly earn over $40,000 a month from posting on Favorited.

Participants in the funding round include Andreessen Horowitz, HF0, Soma Ventures and several angel investors from the entertainment and social space. The newly raised capital was earmarked for product development and helped the company grow its team from 10 to 20.

Looking ahead, the company plans to expand globally and is in discussions with strategic investors about additional external capital, although Ferraro notes that it is not necessarily needed. The platform claims to generate more than $4 million in monthly revenue. In the last week alone, more than 2.5 million dollars were given to the creators of the Favorites group.

Favorites are available for download App Store and Google Play Store. The platform has 1.3 million app installs.