BuzzFeed, the U.S. media company long associated with viral quizzes, listicles, and a once-lauded journalism arm, says it’s ready for a fresh reinvention in the age of artificial intelligence. That was the message from co-founder and CEO Jonah Peretti during a presentation in Austin, where he unveiled BuzzFeed’s next big bet: a new spin-off called Branch Office focused on AI-powered consumer apps built around creativity, connection, and online culture.
Peretti framed Branch Office as the next step in BuzzFeed’s years-long experimentation with AI. He argued that new AI formats can help people connect with each other, build community, and bond over shared taste and cultural moments. But the big reveal didn’t land smoothly. The session opened with slideshow issues and moved into app demos that drew a muted response—more polite chuckles than real excitement—suggesting the concept may be clearer to BuzzFeed than to potential users.
Branch Office founder Bill Shouldis, a BuzzFeed product director, introduced two early apps: BF Island and Conjure.
BF Island is positioned as a group chat experience that includes AI photo editing tools. On its face, AI image features aren’t new. The more distinctive hook is what BuzzFeed believes will keep people coming back: an in-app library of fast-moving internet trends and memes curated by an editorial team. The idea is that instead of staring at a blank canvas, users can jump into timely prompts and references pulled from “very online” moments—those blink-and-you-miss-it cultural spikes that spread across social feeds and disappear just as quickly.
Then there’s Conjure, an app that echoes the “daily prompt” concept popularized by once-a-day photo platforms, but with a twist. Instead of focusing on selfies, Conjure nudges users to capture images of the world around them. In the on-stage demo, the prompt was poetic and spooky: “What lies between the trees and the moon?” Users snapped a photo of the night sky as eerie visuals flashed, capped off with a whispered line: “What will you conjure?”
The room didn’t seem sure what to make of it. The pause after the demo was punctuated by a single cough and a bit of uncomfortable laughter—an awkward moment that highlighted the challenge of pitching a vibe-based social product to an audience that wants clarity. Shouldis added another curveball: Conjure also features an “AI spirit for a CEO,” a phrase that raised more questions than it answered.
Alongside those apps, Peretti also revealed Quiz Party, a social experience that lets people take BuzzFeed-style quizzes with friends and share results together—an attempt to modernize one of the company’s most recognizable formats and turn it into a more interactive, communal activity.
The timing of this AI push is hard to ignore. BuzzFeed recently warned it has “substantial doubt” about its ability to continue operating as a business, while acknowledging liquidity challenges and ongoing strategic conversations. The company posted a net loss of $57.3 million last year and says it plans to focus on Studio IP plus new AI-driven apps moving forward.
Even in a room filled with tech-friendly attendees, skepticism came through during the Q&A. One audience member pointed to a common problem with daily-prompt social apps: novelty fades. Once the initial curiosity wears off, how do you keep people returning? Shouldis responded that Conjure is expected to evolve beyond what it is today, with possibilities like video, audio, and faster prototyping—he even suggested future community-building features enabled by newer development workflows.
BuzzFeed’s underlying thesis isn’t outlandish. AI can speed up software development, making it easier for product teams to iterate quickly, test new ideas, and adapt before users lose interest. Peretti summed it up with a line meant to signal a broader shift in digital media: “In a way, software is the new content.”
But there’s a gap between what AI makes possible and what people actually want to do with it. Right now, BuzzFeed’s new apps feel driven more by the capabilities of AI than by a deeply compelling user need. And before rapid iteration can matter, the apps still have to win over an audience in the first place. If Branch Office can translate BuzzFeed’s instinct for culture into products people genuinely enjoy using every day, it could become a meaningful next chapter. If not, it risks becoming another ambitious reinvention that struggles to find its place.
