What it is

Coub lets you create, view and discover short, looped videos from any video source on the Internet.

A “coub” is a looped video that lasts up to 10 seconds long. Unlike animated gifs, coubs can include high quality sound. Each coub is attributed to its author and links back to the original video and audio sources. Brands and publishers favor this because it increases web traffic to their content without needing a complicated distribution channel. Fans love it because it makes discovering new content less complicated.

How Coub works

Upload your own video, or grab one from anywhere on the Internet by copy/pasting its URL into Coub. The software lets you trim the videos, combine them, and add a soundtrack using a built-in editor.

Coub makes it easy to create video mashups, moving photos, or 360° product videos.

Why now?

In 2015, online video accounted for 50% of all mobile traffic, and as the number of smartphone users around the globe climbs, video watching will represent an even greater percentage of mobile traffic.

A lot of what goes viral online today is mixed media content made to be consumed in short doses. We believe more huge platforms will emerge that make it easy for people to make and discover this type of content.

Coub is exciting because it lowers the barrier to creating and remixing high quality, short videos. While apps like Vine focus on creators who record their own video, Coub allows you to use and remix existing video and audio. For example, a movie reviewer writing about the latest Michael Bay movie could quickly spin up a montage of the best Baysian explosions.

Coub has 54 million active monthly users viewing more than 500 million coubs each month. They’ve built something addictive and fun and we’re excited to see where they take the platform next.

What’s next? Coub wants to become the primary destination for creating and discovering short, looped videos. It will be a place for visual reflection on trending topics, and a way to discover new movies, tv shows and video games.

What YC liked about Coub

“The founders are strong and have built a great product with limited resources. The way content is being consumed is changing rapidly and we think it will continue to change moving forward. Coub is just one of the most exciting new ways we’ve seen. Their interview reminded me of the interview with Product Hunt’s Ryan Hoover.” – Qasar Younis, Partner & COO, Y Combinator

About the founders

Anton and Igor Gladkoborodov are the two brothers and co-founders behind Coub. The two are serial entrepreneurs that have sold several media companies in Russia. The last project they worked on was Theory & Practice, Russia’s biggest educational entertainment platform that connects people with lectures online and offline.