You’ve definitely seen Ello by now – with people desperately begging for invites, or boasting that they have loads to give away.

But how has Ello become so ubiquitous so quickly?

According to the limited resources available online, founder Paul Budnitz says that the network’s been in use for around 100 of his collective’s artist and designer friends for over a year – they only started sending invites outside of this in April. They have no ambition to be Facebook.

Despite the rapid uptake and belief in the hype, there’s a sceptical tone in the air around Ello. How can they take on Facebook when they’re shunning advertising? The premium model they’re talking about can only go so far.

The founders say they still own the majority of the company, and they say they’re not actually interested in taking on Facebook.

However, they raised substantial VC funds ($435,000) just before this mega-spike says otherwise. Investors don’t invest without a business model that promises return.

So how have they got to the stage where they were getting sign-ups at the rate of 31,000 per hour?

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