POV: You’re on the Yubo app, and possibilities in the live feed are endless. What do you do now? We’ll help you decide with the persona that matches you best. 

The Entertainer: Click that plus button and start your own live! Dance, sing, tell stories, wash the dishes, water your dog, walk your fish, whatever you want! People are constantly looking for lives to hang out in, so make yours a welcoming space and instantly start connecting with those who jump in to join you. Don’t stress about the views, Yubo is all about friends, not followers. 

The One Who Uses Yubo To Pass The Time: Need something to fill the silence while you’re doing – well, anything? For these types of needs, we recommend hopping into one of our lives with multiple streamers – bonus points if you can find a full panel with 10 streamers!  With multiple people in one live, you’re guaranteed to never have a silent moment. Even better, stream Youtube into your live directly from the Yubo App! Fill your own silence and help others fill theirs as well. 

The Debater: We know your type well on Yubo. No matter the hour, you’ll always be able to find a debate live to hop into. While you're entitled to share your opinions, we do want to ensure debate lives are a safe space. Stay respectful and be sure to enunciate. Comment warriors, this is for you as well.

The One Here for A Good Time: If you’re ready for it, join the #1 live on Yubo! The more viewers, the more energy. Be sure to raise your hand to join the stream and add to the entertainment, or react from the comments and raise the energy in your own way! 

The World Traveler: Do you want to see the world, but still have to save up for the big trip? Meet people from all over the world with Yubo! Set your preferred live location to Tokyo, Rome, Paris, or anywhere you want! Meet people who will virtually show you around their hometowns or who can even help you learn their language, just like this user who learned 7 languages with Yubo – C'est incroyable!

The Gamer or Anime Lover: Tired of gamers being grouped in with anime? Don’t worry, the Yubo App separates these into two separate categories of lives. Users hosting lives about gaming or anime can be found in dedicated tabs to help you ensure you find your kind of people that you can weeb out with. 

The User Who Isn’t Into Lives: Don’t worry there’s room on Yubo for you too! Head over to our swipes tab and start matching with friends! Maybe you’ll even find a friend group that makes you love lives. 

Discover with us the essence of Yubo where you can chat, play games and share your passions! Livestreams are where all the fun happens on Yubo, so follow us in an introduction to the different types of Yubo streamers. And maybe you'll recognize yourself in one of them!

Tips and Tricks On How To Make the Most Out of Yubo Lives

We take seriously our responsibility to make Yubo as safe as possible, and we have put safety at the core of every decision since our launch to fulfill that responsibility. As the online landscape continues to change, we, too, are constantly evolving and upgrading our practices and systems to ensure safety is built in by design.

The devastating events of 24 May in Uvalde, Texas, brought to light systemic issues in society that need to be addressed. We are dedicated to doing our part by identifying and implementing safety solutions to the Yubo platform. In the days since, we have been working to accelerate safety developments in our pipeline and further expand the scope of existing safeguards across our platform. We have made meaningful changes to Yubo during this time and will continue to roll out additional developments in the weeks ahead as part of our continuing commitment to safety innovation in social media. 

The following enhancements have been expedited to supplement our existing safety practices and provide greater support for our users:

Updated risk-detection policy
Yubo has broadened its policy to review content and act on infractions based on more stringent laws and regulations around sexual behavior and harassment; hate speech; weapons; violence; drugs; and animal abuse, among other risks. Previously, our response to content related to these risk areas was determined by corresponding laws in the region where the content was posted. We feel it is in all users’ best interest that we apply more severe standards to content review and intervention across the board.



Enhanced user-reporting capabilities
This summer, Yubo users worldwide will be able to attach up to four media files, such as screenshots or video recordings, to any reports they submit, thereby providing greater context to Yubo team members tasked with reviewing reports and taking action accordingly. Yubo is committed to ensuring that every user has sufficient agency to acknowledge how they are feeling, and if uncomfortable, take steps to voice their concerns. User feedback is essential to our mission to continually improve the safety of our platform. 



Audio-moderation technology 
Roughly half of people who have reported experiencing harassment in online gaming, where live streaming has historically been most prevalent, were targeted by voice, according to a report by the Anti-Defamation League. Yet innovations in audio moderation have struggled to keep pace with advances in real-time image and video moderation. On Tuesday, 31 May, Yubo became one of the first social media companies in the world to deploy audio-moderation technology, supplementing our existing capabilities to allow for comprehensive automatic moderation across the platform. Developed in partnership with Hive, the technology is being tested in beta for English-speaking users with the goal of expanding to additional languages. 



 Combined-signals risk detection algorithm 
On Tuesday, 31 May, Yubo deployed a new algorithm-based detection system, which we have been developing for over six months. The algorithm aggregates and assesses a combination of signals – keywords, emojis, and images, for example – to evaluate content with context. This bolsters our other safety detection tools, which scan for individual signals of infractions or risk, and provides enriched context to our emergency escalation team.

As a leading social platform for teens and young adults, we are committed to prioritizing the safety of our users. As such, Yubo is guided by a safety advisory board of respected thought leaders from organizations such as the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) and Thorn, as well as partner organizations in government, law enforcement, NGOs, and charities. We are thankful for their support as we continue to develop and improve the Yubo platform for our users.

We remain shocked and deeply saddened by this recent tragedy. Our thoughts are with the victims, their families, and all who have been impacted.

At Yubo, we take seriously our responsibility to make Yubo as safe as possible, and we have put safety at the core of every decision since our launch to fulfill that responsibility. As the online landscape continues to change, we, too, are constantly evolving and upgrading our practices and systems to ensure safety is built in by design. We have made meaningful changes to Yubo and will continue to roll out additional developments as part of our continuing commitment to safety innovation in social media.

A letter from our CEO on new safety policies and features on Yubo

A Letter From Our CEO on New Safety Policies and Features on Yubo

What's this new feature on Yubo all about? 

In May 2022, Yubo introduced a new age verification feature to help keep all of our users safe while on the app. If you are a Yubo user, here’s what you need to know! 

You might have received a new pop-up either while using the app or while creating an account on Yubo. Far from being mysterious, this pop-up is simply the launch of Yubo's new age verification system – and this time it’s an easy and simple process, without any need for an ID card, documentation or other form of proof. 

Why is Yubo introducing this new feature?

Online age verification allows platforms to confirm age and identity of users over the internet. Yubo’s main purpose for introducing this new verification feature is to help continue to keep everyone on Yubo safe. By confirming our users’ ages, we can ensure that everyone is the age they say when they are interacting with each other on the app. This will help prevent people who intend to lie about who they are or create false profiles. It also allows users on Yubo to be confident they are interacting with others in their similar age group, just as they would in real life. 

What is Yubo's new age verification system? 

Yubo’s age verification system was developed in collaboration with Yoti, who has been our trusted partner since 2019 in helping to verify the identities of suspicious user accounts on Yubo. Yoti and Yubo are now adding this new safety feature to the mix to provide another step in age verification for all our users. It will serve as an initial filter when entering the app helping to ensure users are the age they claim to be.

How does Yubo's age verification system work?

This new age verification process is intentionally very easy and simple. In fact, all it requires is a real-time photo that you, as a user, will take within the app. Yoti’s age estimation technology will then analyze your photo and estimate your age. It also uses a special liveness algorithm that takes a short video to detect that it is a real photo and not a screenshot or image pulled from Google. Once your age is delivered and it matches the age on your profile, you are verified and can access the app. However, if your age doesn’t match, you will need to go through an additional verification process. 

Yubo How To Verify Your Age

Why was I asked to verify my age and not another user I know? 

The age verification feature has been launched in beta stage for users ages 13 and 14, but will begin rolling out to the rest of users with the goal of age verifying everyone on Yubo by the end of 2022. 

Protecting your data is particularly important to us when creating any feature on the app, and our new age verification system is no exception. Thanks to this new system, no identification documents or personal information will be required and instead you will only need to take a real-time photo of yourself within the Yubo app, which will then be processed by Yoti's age estimation technology. At Yubo, our ultimate goal is to make age verification accessible while guaranteeing the protection of our users' data. We are proud to be the first major social media platform who will have age verified all of its users! 

You can check out our step-by-step guide below or watch this video to learn more about how this new verification feature works. 

 When you receive the initial pop-up, you will first be directed to verify your age and agree to the terms of the verification. 

Once you accept, your camera will activate, and you will be prompted to place your face within an oval that appears on the screen. 

Once your photo is taken, Yoti’s age estimation technology will analyze the photo. You will be notified that your age is verified, that your age doesn’t match or that you are not using a legitimate picture. 

If your age is verified, you will be brought to the Yubo homepage. If your verification fails, you will not be able to access the app and will need to provide additional ID documentation to verify your age.

And that’s all it takes! It’s as easy as that. If you have questions, you can always reach out to Yubo Support or check out our online Safety Hub to learn more about what we do to keep Yubo a safe place for everyone.

Yubo, the social live-streaming app for Gen Z implements an industry-leading age verification feature in partnership with Yoti. Yubo will become the first major social media app to institute a wide age verification process across its platform. Yubo’s goal is to age-verify 100% of all users on the platform by the end of 2022.

Yubo’s new age verification feature helps keep you safe

Yubo’s New Age Verification Feature Helps Keep You Safe

At Yubo, we stand in solidarity with Ukraine and all of the Ukrainian people in the wake of the current military invasion. Our hearts go out to those who are suffering as a result of the ongoing violence and who have been displaced from their homes. As a European company, we feel deeply affected by this war on our home continent. We are committed to supporting our employees whose families have been impacted by this devastating crisis, and have pledged to donate to essential on-the-ground relief efforts by organizations such as UNICEF, World Food Program, Direct Relief, International Rescue Committee among others to help deliver urgent supplies and services. We are donating to make a difference and will continue to follow the news closely to determine other ways in which we can show our support.  

On February 24, Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia, ordered an invasion of its neighboring country Ukraine in protest of Ukraine’s moves towards joining the European Union and NATO (an international military alliance). Within the first day of the attack, hundreds of thousands of Ukranains fled their homes and tried to seek refuge across borders in countries such as Poland, Hungary and Romania. That number has now reached nearly over 1 million, and the EU believes that figure could quickly climb to 7 million. The Ukrainian people are living through terrifying times as bombs and air missiles rain down on them and they seek cover in bomb shelters left over from the Cold War. With millions displaced from their homes and left in freezing temperatures without food, water, shelter, medical supplies and other essential services, Ukraine is facing one of Europe’s worst humanitarian crises in decades. To learn more about the conflict and what’s happening, you can read about it here. 

Stay informed: Follow journalists, media sources and aid organizations who are on the ground to stay up to date on the current situation and how to help – and be cautious of misinformation by unreliable news sources.

Donate: With millions of Ukrainian people in need of relief, organizations across the world are rallying together to ensure essential resources reach them safely. You can easily support by making a donation to these organizations, or to general funds and personal fundraisers linked here.  

Speak up: Help spread awareness of what is happening in Ukraine and share useful resources with your network of friends and family. 

Go local: See if there are any local food or clothing drives in your area that are transporting supplies to Ukraine for humanitarian aid. 

Contact your government officials: Reach out to your local or national government representatives and urge them to provide safety and protection for Ukrainian refugees. 

At Yubo, we stand in solidarity with Ukraine and all of the Ukrainian people in the wake of the current military invasion. Our hearts go out to those who are suffering as a result of the ongoing violence and who have been displaced from their homes. As a European company, we feel deeply affected by this war on our home continent. We are committed to supporting our employees whose families have been impacted by this devastating crisis

In Support of Ukraine

Safer Internet Day is an international celebration to promote safety and well-being online. It is celebrated by millions of people each February. Each year, Safer Internet Day aims to raise awareness of emerging online issues and current concerns. While it especially promotes online safety for young people, everyone benefits from a safer online world. From cyberbullying to social networking to digital identity, Safer Internet Day inspires an international conversation about using technology responsibly, critically, and creatively. 

In 2021, the theme for Safer Internet Day was “Together for a Better Internet”. It emphasized that whether you are a young person, a parent, a teacher, a policymaker, or whether you represent an organisation or industry, everyone has a role to play in creating and maintaining a better online world. Thousands of local, national, and international organisations participated to promote the positive use of digital technology for children and young people. 

Safer internet day is run by Insafe, a European network of Safer Internet Centres. Centres implement awareness and educational campaigns, run helplines, and work closely with youth to create a better internet. However, Safer Internet Day is also celebrated outside Europe. In 2009, the concept of Safer Internet Day Committees was introduced, and now, more than 100 global Committees work closely with the Safer Internet Day Coordination Team. Many external organizations also support Safer Internet Day with awareness-raising events and activities. Everyone is encouraged to participate in Safer Internet Day, whether they are an organization, a parent, or a young person!

Safer Internet day was created as an initiative of the EU SafeBorders project in 2004 to raise awareness of emerging online issues and current concerns. Safer Internet Day is even more important since the coronavirus crisis forced most of our daily activities to move online. On Safer Internet Day 2021, a brand new research report, “An Internet Young People Can Trust” surveyed over 2,000 young people aged 8-17, and revealed that 77% of 8-17s felt being online had been a more important part of their life in 2020 than before. As young people spend more and more time browsing the internet, we want them to be protected.          

What is the theme of Safer Internet Day 2022? 

The theme of Safer Internet Day 2022 is “All fun and games? Exploring respect and relationships online”. Each year, Safer Internet Day explores a new issue or theme which is impacting the lives of young people online. For 2022, the Day celebrates young people’s role in creating a safer internet and the ways they use the interactive entertainment spaces they are a part of. Online communities and relationships are very important to young people and have only become more important over the last few years. From gaming and chat to streaming and video, young people are shaping interactive entertainment spaces they are a part of. Safer Internet Day 2022 celebrates young people's role in creating a safer internet, whether that is while gaming and creating content or interacting with their friends and peers.

Safer Internet Day 2022 will take place on 8th February 2022!

Celebrate on Yubo, of course! Whether you are taking part in our live streams, or talking to some new friends, make staying safe online a part of the conversation. Here are some other ideas of how to celebrate safer internet day: 

Start a Live on Yubo to raise awareness about online safety! Share your screen and show videos, share tips, and engage with viewers by encouraging them to share how they stay safe online. 

DM a friend to let them know about the activities taking place on Yubo or in your life to celebrate Online Safety Day. Encourage them to become more engaged in the importance of online safety. 

Watch an online safety video. There are so many videos on important safety issues like respectful communication, cyberbullying, online advertising, false information, image sharing, and self-esteem. Watch one to become more informed about online safety and share it with your friends and family so that they can be too!

Develop an online Code of Conduct. Think about how you want to be treated and treat others online. Write down some rules and best practices for yourself. Brainstorms actions you can take to make the online world a better place!

How many countries celebrate safer internet day?

Approximately 200 countries and territories celebrate Safer Internet Day. From its launch in 2004 in the EU, it has grown beyond its traditional geographic zone and is now celebrated worldwide. Its size makes Safer Internet Day a landmark event in the online safety calendar. 

The internet is not inherently unsafe, but there are some emerging safety issues in these spaces as well as issues young people have been navigating for some time; particularly the lack of respect individuals display towards each other, groups ‘ganging up’ against other groups, and the sense that it is easy to ‘get away’ with negative behaviour such as meanness, bullying and swearing. They speak about hate directed at particular groups, particularly LGBT+ users, and misogyny on gaming platforms. They tell us the apparent lack of consequences for negative behaviour has an impact on their safety and well-being. 

The internet is also unsafe because research consistently shows that many children do not tell an adult if something goes wrong online. Safer Internet Day inspires parents to have conversations with their children about online safety. There is currently a lack of policy enforcing that everything that is illegal offline is equally prohibited on the internet. That’s why talking to your child is one of the most effective ways of ensuring they feel safe on the internet and will come to an adult if they encounter an issue. 

What does Yubo do to make the internet safer? 

Not just on Safer Internet Day, but every day, Yubo fosters supportive relationships and respectful communities. We equip our users with the tools they need to keep themselves and others on Yubo safe. We have a zero-tolerance policy for hate, bullying, and harassment. Our platform is a place for connection, community and collaboration because we empower our users to treat each other respectfully and arm them with resources if they encounter hate or bullying directed at them or someone else. 

Safer Internet Day is an international celebration to promote safety and wellbeing online. Yubo takes this opportunity to reiterate its daily commitment to making its platform a safe environment for its entire community. Yubo is a place for connection, community and collaboration because we empower our users to treat each other respectfully and arm them with resources if they encounter hate or bullying directed at them or someone else.

Everything you need to know about Safer Internet Day

Everything You Need to Know About Safer Internet Day

At Yubo, we’ve been focusing on building a place for Gen Z to make meaningful connections and have fulfilling conversations. That’s why we’ve been busy building features that help new users easily make groups of friends with common interests. More specifically, we want to encourage new users to express their hobbies and interests in their profiles and also explain that joining a live for the first time isn’t as high-stakes or intimidating as it may seem. 

Adding Tags at Sign-up = A More Personalized User Experience 

Users add tags to their profiles to show their new friends the latest topics that they’re keen to chat about. To make sure new users start off with plenty to discuss, we’ve included the tags feature in the account creation flow. In order for them to find the right tags to add to their profile, new categories have been launched– making it easier than ever to find everything from your favorite show or your favorite hobby. Already, this feature has been adopted by 65 percent of new users! 

We want our users to make friends with common interests, so it will now be possible to add friends by tags too! This new feature is super easy to access. Now, user’s top tags will appear directly in their “friends” tab so that all they need to do is click on them to find their future friends. 

This feature will also be available directly from users’ profiles. If a user comes across a profile with a  tag that interests them, they can click on it to find other users who share that interest. This feature is going to help users make valuable new connections and meaningful friendships. Not to mention that sharing the same interests is the perfect ice-breaking to start a new friendship! 

We Know Going Live can be Scary: So Let’s do a Test Run First 

Yubo is for all personality types,  from type A extroverts to the painfully shy. And no matter where someone falls on that spectrum, joining a live for the first time can seem intimidating. That’s why we added a new onboarding step that will differentiate between a watcher and a  streamer, and show users that they can join a livestream with their microphones and camera turned off. We hope that this improvement will show every user that they can socialize on Live without barriers, no matter what their comfort level is.

In Yubo's newest product update, we've added two new features: Adding friends by tag, and a Live test run when you create your account. We hope these new features will encourage new users to express their hobbies and interests in their profiles and also explain that joining a live for the first time isn’t as high-stakes or intimidating as it may seem. Adding friends by tag will enable users to make friends with common interests, and to show their new friends the latest topics they are looking to connect about.

Yubo Launches New Features: Add Friends by Tag

Worried about school or uni? Friends or family getting you down? Anxious about your health or finances? It’s been a tough 18 months for everyone so this year’s World Mental Health  Day (#WMHD), which takes place on Sunday 10 October, is more important than ever. 

In the US, for example, a study by not-for-profit organisation FAIR Health found that anxiety and depression among 13 to 22-year olds increased significantly in the spring of 2020. And in the UK, record numbers of children and young people (almost 200,000) sought access to NHS mental health services between April and June 2021, according to a report by the Royal College of Psychiatrists.

Furthermore, this year’s #WMHD theme of ‘Mental Health in an Unequal World’ reminds us all that race,  ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, income and other factors can have an impact on our mental health and the kind of care we receive. As this article  by the World Federation for Mental Health puts it, “Many people with a  mental illness do not receive the treatment that they are entitled to  and deserve and together with their families and carers continue to  experience stigma and discrimination.” 

UNICEF recently set out three opportunities for improving young people’s mental health – one of which is to ‘continue engaging young people, their caregivers and their communities in judgement-free conversations about mental health’.  We support this wholeheartedly and, with more than 50 million users, we remain committed to encouraging open and honest dialogue about mental wellbeing on the Yubo platform. 

“At a time when young people should have had the freedom to explore who they are, doing whatever it is that they enjoy and gaining skills for the future, their lives were put on hold for many uncertain months. As everyone around them also seemed super-stressed, it was even harder to be open about how they were feeling. For some, this led to increased feelings of anxiety, stress and low mood,” explains Dr Richard Graham, Consultant Psychiatrist,  Clinical Director of Good Thinking and member of the Yubo safety board. “World Mental Health Day is an excellent opportunity to remind the Yubo community that it’s OK to express how you’re feeling and also feel it is your right to ask for support. Even taking part in Lives can be very helpful for sharing your  thoughts and realising you’re not alone.” 

To raise awareness of #WMHD and support members of the Yubo community on their journey to good mental wellbeing, we’re holding a series of events this month. These include  talks with:

AJ Clementine – an Aussie influencer and model who shares her transition on social media and promotes good mental health and body positivity 

Partnership for Young London – a UK association that aims to connect everyone who cares about young people in London

Emily Rios – a US influencer who advocates for good mental health and body positivity 

Dora Kamau and Akeem Pierre – US influencers who will discuss mental health in the black American community 

We’ll also be running a meditation session with a coach, a bedtime and relaxation story session with Shane Donohue and expanding our Ranting Lives. During these sessions, we invite young people to open up about any problems or concerns they have, vent their emotions and find others who will listen and provide much-needed support.

In addition, we’re teaming up with leading mental health charities and other organisations to run in-app  #WMHD awareness campaigns in our main territories. By working with Stem4 (Australia, New Zealand, US, Canada), Partnership for Young London (UK), Friends (Sweden) and Reach Out (Australia) we’ll give our users access to mental health support and resources. These campaigns will be visible in our Swipes function throughout October.

As the world gets back to some kind of stability after the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s vital that young people receive the support they deserve – so that they can thrive now and plan for the future. This might be through schools, healthcare services, charity helplines or wellbeing apps, such as Stem4. Social media companies like Yubo also play a crucial role by helping young people to connect with and support their peers. As a recent blog on the Parenting for a Digital Future website notes, the internet provides important communication and socialising opportunities for young people. It goes on to say, “In situations when children are struggling  with mental difficulties, online communities can offer unique support as they provide a strong connection, non-judgmental understanding, and a feeling of belonging.”

“The Yubo team has built a social media platform without influencers, followers or likes and works hard to promote kindness, positivity and resilience,” comments Annie Mullins  OBE, Safety Advisor to Yubo. “With young people turning to their digital spaces more and more, it’s vital that Yubo promotes national awareness days such as #WMHD but, more importantly, that self-care and supporting others is encouraged all year round. Thank you to everyone who is giving a  talk and supporting our in-app wellbeing campaigns – we really  appreciate it.”

Friends not followers, Mental health during COVID-19 and Safer Internet Day.

Yubo is celebrating this World Mental Health Day with special guests, events, and of course, Lives about the importance of mental health

Yubo x World Mental Health Day

The Gen Z social network app expands its sustainable freemium business model protecting user data

Yubo, the leading platform for young people to socialise online, today announces the launch of YuBucks, a virtual online currency. This new paid feature is part of the development of the social network's unique business model that monetises through sustainable social commerce rather than selling its users' data.

In mid-July, Yubo will also be launching another new paid-for feature: Pixels. Yubo has collaborated with the Pixel artist Banfan to create collectible digital art representing qualities, moods, and personalities. Yubo users will be able to purchase these in-app and can start their own collection, send it to their friends and send it to people they admire on the app, for example, their favorite streamers.

Yubo - Introducing Pixels

Founded in 2015, Yubo’s mission is to enable Gen Z to make genuine friendships online and is completely influencer free and like-free. By moving away from the traditional social network business model, Yubo’s users are able to more easily connect with each other without the pressure of likes. 

Sacha Lazimi, Co-founder and CEO of Yubo, said “The launch of YuBucks and upcoming launch of Pixels, is another step forward in strengthening our unique business model that montezises through social commerce as well as enhances the in-app experience for our users. 

Our freemium business models allow us to keep our users' data safe and protected, which is a top priority for us and our users. We are carving a new path in social media - at Yubo, we believe you shouldn't have to sell your personal data in order to enjoy and experience a platform.”

The addition of YuBucks creates a more seamless experience for users as they can purchase any paid-for feature in-app without having to repeat the payment process. As a result, users waste less time on microtransactions and can fully enjoy their experience on Yubo.

Yubucks will also facilitate the prize or reward system at events organised in the application. Users will be able to win prizes in YuBucks and be free to choose which paid feature they prefer and wish to obtain.

Yubo, the leading platform for young people to socialise online, announces the launch of YuBucks, a virtual online currency. Yubo also launched another new paid-for feature: Pixels, collectible digital art representing qualities, moods, and personalities.

Yubo Launches YuBucks and Pixels

~  Bye bye Valentine’s Day pressures and traditions, why not committing to yourself this year instead? Gen Z is changing the rules and building on self-love ~ 

Whilst this time of year tends to shine a spotlight on romantic relationships, at Yubo we believe that the most important relationship you have is the one you share with yourself. This month, we decided to invite some inspiring and strong young people to reflect on self-love by opening up about issues they’ve had to overcome to be their most authentic selves today. 

We surveyed over 35,000 of our 13-25 year-old users all over the world to better understand how they value their relationship with themselves, rather than with a partner. Turns out over a fifth (33% in the US and 21% in the UK) referenced the former as the “the most important” vs. 16.5% citing a romantic partner, coming last behind their relationship with their family (24% in the US) or friends (29% in the UK). 

Despite this, half (51%) of Gen Zers still feel there is a societal pressure to be in a relationship on Valentine’s day. And, where is this pressure coming from? 

Doing it for the ‘gram: Overwhelmingly, half (50%) of teens and young adults said they felt the most pressure to be loved up on Valentine’s Day from traditional social media 

Me, Myself and I: A fifth (21%) said the pressure is actually coming from within themselves 

Television Romance: 17% of Gen Zers said TV shows, movies and music are fuelling the romantic pressure around Valentine's day

Although Gen Z prioritises the relationship with themselves over a romantic relationship, we revealed that over two-fifths (43%) of Gen Z say that loving themselves is ‘still a work in progress. However, young people are taking necessary steps to love themselves by spending more time on self-care at least a few times a week, with more than 20% actually carving out time for it even daily. 

A guide to Gen Z Self-care - Speak, Sleep, Work Out, Hydrate, Repeat

The most popular forms of self-care for Gen Z is working out (coming first in the UK with 36.5%), getting more sleep (with an overwhelming success in the US with 47,7%) and speaking to or spending time with friends and family (coming first in Australia with more than 38%). This is closely followed by drinking more water and shopping. 

In light of the findings, Yubo knows facilitating young people in learning to love themselves is more important than ever before, especially as lockdowns have negatively affected the mental health of those aged between 13-24 severely. A survey conducted on our users revealed more than 60% of British and American teens felt depressed because of the pandemic. 

In order to help them boost their self-compassion this Valentine's day, Dr Richard Graham, Consultant Psychiatrist, Clinical Director of Good Thinking and member of the Yubo safety board, has revealed his top tips to help us all learn how to treat ourselves with more kindness: 

Comfort your body. Try to eat something healthy. Lie down and get some rest. Perhaps massage your own neck, feet, or hands or even take a walk. Remember the things that improve how you feel physically and try them again.

Give yourself encouragement. Think of what you would say to a good friend if he or she was facing a difficult or stressful situation. Then say those same words to yourself to boost your confidence and motivation. 

Make time for some breathing space. Make time for some breathing space. When everything seems uncertain or overwhelming, take a break. Take note of your feelings, but then also focus on your body senses; feel the ground beneath your feet. This will refresh you and help you engage with what you need to.

Put it into print. When you are feeling more relaxed, write down or print off a list of your achievements, or your good qualities and keep it somewhere safe. If you start to doubt yourself, read those words again and respect the person who wrote them.

Address the Problem: Get to the root of what is bothering you first and foremost so you can figure out how to navigate the problem. From there, you can identify what you need to feel better about the situation and ultimately practice self-love. 

Embracing your true self online: giving a voice to our community

In addition to the poll, we also had the chance to speak with some of our amazing users that have learned to love and embrace who they are over time and with the support of friends on Yubo :

Zach (@queenzach2019 on Yubo) a 19-year-old from suburban Pennsylvania: “Yubo has served as a powerful vessel for me, a place I have been able to connect with friends that only a few months ago they had not even known yet. While self-love hasn’t always been easy for me, and still is something I work on daily, Yubo has been a safe space for me to be myself in the truest form of the word.” 

Mikaylah (@kaykaymid) from Long Island, NY: “As a student in my first year at college during a pandemic in NYC, it’s hard to meet new people. Even though I’m on the dance team, making friends during lockdowns hasn’t been easy on campus. Yubo has made my friend pool that much wider, where we can talk about body positivity, self-care and self-love, and anything else that’s on our minds.”

Whilst this time of year tends to shine a spotlight on romantic relationships, at Yubo we believe that the most important relationship you have is the one you share with yourself.

Thank you, Next

Thank You, Next

2020 has shone a spotlight on many inequalities in our society and we have seen a renewed interest in politics and social justice among young people. From climate change (#FridaysForFuture) to systemic racism (#BlackLivesMatter), from COVID-19 (#StayHome) to sexual violence (#MeToo), social media provides a vital platform for teens and others to focus on the issues that matter to them.

In the midst of a global pandemic, the US election captured many young people’s attention. Described by one media outlet as “the revenge of the millennials”, young voters were a decisive factor in the election result. Figures from NBC suggest that 65% of 18 to 24-year-olds voted for Joe Biden – significantly more than any other age group.

We certainly saw the US election gain traction on Yubo. Over the last six months, there were more than 150,000 live streams on the topic and, around election day (3-4 November), the Yubo community was discussing Trump vs Biden in more than 15,000 live streams.

During election week, we ran a poll of more than 14,000 Yubo members under the age of 18 in the US. More than half (59%) of the respondents said they were “very invested” in the election and 82% had watched at least one of the presidential debates. When we asked “What topic was most important for you in the 2020 election?”, ‘social justice’ was the most popular answer (57%) – streets ahead of ‘economics’ (8%), ‘environment’ (7%) and ‘education’ (3%).  

There are lots of examples in American history of young people driving social change, including the civil rights movement and the Vietnam War. With so many economic and social issues currently affecting the younger generation, it’s perhaps no surprise that youth voter turnout in the 2020 US election was much higher than four years ago. Strikingly, 93% of the under-18 Yubo users we surveyed said they would have voted if they had been allowed to. 

Inspired by young activists, such as Greta Thunberg, Ja’Mal Green and Malala Yousafzai, children and teens are increasingly urging politicians and other decision-makers to help them change the world. As Deloitte’s Global Millennial Survey notes, young people are “... deeply affected by the pandemic but seem able to see opportunity in the darkness, viewing this crisis as an opportunity to reset and drive the change they want to see. Millennials and Gen Zs aren’t just hoping for a better world to emerge after the COVID-19 pandemic releases its grip on society — they want to lead the change.”

For younger members of the Yubo community, we offer a safe space where they can meet new people and hang out. As our usage stats show, many young people are choosing to debate the issues of the day in our live rooms. With more than half of the respondents in our recent poll citing ‘social justice’ as the most important topic when electing a new President of the United States, technology continues to play a vital role in connecting them to one another and helping them to have their voices heard. We are proud to support this go-getting, change-inspiring, put-others-first generation.

Find out how we’re supporting the Yubo community when it comes to equality, mental health and online safety.

2020 has shone a spotlight on many inequalities in our society and we have seen a renewed interest in politics and social justice among young people. We certainly saw the US election gain traction on Yubo. Over the last six months, there were more than 150,000 live streams on the topic and, around election day, the Yubo community was discussing Trump vs Biden in more than 15,000 live streams.

Yubo's Take

Here for all of it.