You don’t have to be an artist to make art, or a comedian to make lulz…at least not on The New Hive, where you can create one-off websites by drag-and-dropping any type of content. Upload some pics of friends, draw mustaches on them, and embed a ridiculous soundtrack from SoundCloud. Lay your latest YouTube creation on a bed of animated kittens. Or get serious and publish your photography portfolio with contact info and links to your other sites.
We’re all creative, The New Hive’s page editor just makes expressing it easier. Be one of first people in its private beta. Sign up code below.
The startup hatched from five friends who felt boxed in by basic meme generators like Canvas and the I Can Haz Cheezburger page builder. However, they also felt the need for something simpler than Paper for iPad, something easy enough for anyone to use. What they wanted was a blank canvas for the web. So they raised a little money from friends and family, less than $100,000, and built The New Hive.
Co-founder Zach Verdin tells me “There’s so much experience we want to put out into the world. A blank white screen can be a bit daunting, but it’s also liberating.” What about sites like Tumblr and Pinterest? Aren’t they outlets for self-expression? Yes, but Verdin says those are only “places to post. The thrill of creating and then sharing an expression is much higher than simply posting.” One day The New Hive might monetize by selling custom URLs, personally branded Hives, or e-commerce functionality.
With a core set of features everyone can use, like shapes, text, vector graphics, uploads, embeds, and sharing, The New Hive’s private beta first opened in November. It’s been kept small to foster a community where creators follow each other , but now it’s ready for new blood. TechCrunch blood. So here’s a link where 1,000 of you can sign up for The New Hive (and a link for 500 more for when those run out). The site’s young so cut it some slack if there’s a little slowness.
What will you create? Here’s some ideas:
A Playlist With A Matching Background
