We Dare You To Fund Us: Venista Ventures, Eierfabrik Invest In Mobile Challenge App Klash

Klash, the mobile app that lets you challenge and dare friends to do things for the fun of it, has raised a “lower 6 digits” seed round from Cologne, Germany-based incubator Venista Ventures, and ‘pre-seed’ fund Eierfabrik. The funding also coincides with Klash rolling out a new version of its iOS app that adds the ability to create an animated GIF as proof that a particular dare or challenge was carried out.

Though not a wholly new idea, Berlin-based Klash is a well-executed mobile take on the ‘dare your friends’ concept. Built on top of Facebook’s social graph, users challenge each other to do something like drink 5 espressos in one go (or anything that’s deemed fun but not too dangerous) and optionally set a reward in return. Other users then take one side or the other, post comments, and can add photos etc. There’s also a ‘stream’ of new challenges so that users can keep tabs on which of their friends are challenging who, although challenges can also be kept private.

“With Klash we are trying to create a platform that enables the user to live up to their competitive instinct and get out of their comfort zone to ultimately have more fun in life”, says co-founder Alex Napetschnig. “It’s an entertainment platform that enables users to capture and share fun moments with their peer group”.

The app is free for end-users. Instead, monetization will come from brands who want to use the platform to engage with consumers. “For brands we are trying find a new way to engage with their users in the offline world”, says Napetschnig. “Brands engage with our users through Klashes. Our users create brand relevant content that advertises the brand in social media to their own community”.

In this context, Napetschnig describes Klash as a “social media engagement tool” that has the potential to deliver a more personalised form of advertising. Or, in other words, Klash joins a long list of startups attempting to create a new public space in which brands are then invited to invade with open arms.

(I did dare the founders to give me the exact figure for this funding round but, uncharacteristically, they chickened out of the challenge.)