Riffsy
The business, the turning points, and the decisions behind them.
Some sections are still being researched1 / 4
Sections to complete：02
01 / WHAT IT BUILT
What the company did
Riffsy was a San Francisco-based GIF search engine founded in 2014 (the record says 2013) by David Macintosh, Erick Hachenburg and Frank Nawabi. Its main product was the GIF Keyboard, a mobile keyboard extension that put a searchable library of millions of GIFs at users' fingertips inside messaging apps. It became a top-five utilities app in the Apple and Google app stores, partnered with Vodafone, Millicom, Facebook, LinkedIn and Kik, and raised $13.5 million from Redpoint Ventures, Menlo Ventures, Cowboy Ventures, OCA Ventures and Tenaya Capital. In 2016 the company rebranded from Riffsy to Tenor.
02 / FAILURE REASONS
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.
03 / EVENT HISTORY
Events in the structured record
- Founded
David Macintosh, Erick Hachenburg and Frank Nawabi founded Riffsy, a GIF search engine with the GIF Keyboard.
- Rebrand
Riffsy rebranded to Tenor to become the 'emotional search engine of the internet'.
- Acquired by Google
Google acquired Tenor (formerly Riffsy) to strengthen image search and Gboard.
04 / CONTEMPORARY REBUILD ASSESSMENT
Difficulty of rebuilding this project today
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.
Overall assessment: Not completed
05 / CAUSAL CHAIN
How the factors connect
- 01
On March 27, 2018, Google acquired Tenor (formerly Riffsy) for an undisclosed sum.
- 02
Tenor continued to operate as a standalone brand with its founders leading the company, powering GIF search in Gboard, Google Messages and major messaging apps.
- 03
No failure causes were reported — the company was a growing market leader and was acquired for strategic reasons.