Whisperly (YC W25) Voice-first chat for strangers

I built Whisperly , a simple voice-first chat app where strangers can talk directly via voice instead of text. The idea came from noticing that text-based apps (Discord, Reddit, etc.) are flooded with low-effort or shallow interactions, while voice creates more authentic, less filtered conversations.

Right now Whisperly does one thing: connect two strangers in a voice room. There’s no feed, no follower counts, and no likes just voice.

I built the first version using LiveKit for low-latency audio, React/Tailwind for the frontend, and a minimal backend for matchmaking. My goal was to test whether strangers actually want to jump into voice-only interactions at scale.

A few things I’m still figuring out: – How to prevent trolling/harassment without killing spontaneity – Whether people prefer 1:1 voice or small group rooms – If the retention curve looks anything like text chat apps or something very different

I’d love feedback from this community, especially on (1) ways to bootstrap trust in a voice-only environment and (2) any ideas for sustainable moderation.

Thanks for reading happy to answer questions.