Instagram: Kevin Systrom & Mike Krieger (2017)

The 'Instagram: Kevin Systrom & Mike Krieger (2017)' episode of 'How I Built This with Guy Raz' podcast delves into the origin story of Instagram, one of the fastest-growing apps in history. The narrative begins with Kevin Systrom, a few years out of Stanford, working at a travel startup by day and teaching himself to code at night. His friend from college, Mike Krieger, was in a similar position. Systrom's initial project was a location-based app called Bourbon, which allowed users to check in at various locations. Despite the existence of other check-in apps like Foursquare, Systrom saw potential in the idea of sharing information via mobile devices but eventually realized that the true potential lay in sharing images, not just location data.

Systrom's meeting with investor Steve Anderson was pivotal. Anderson's interest in Bourbon and his condition for investment - finding a co-founder - led Systrom to partner with Krieger. Together, they pivoted from Bourbon to focus solely on photo sharing, incorporating the insight that users wanted to feel good about the photos they shared. This led to the incorporation of photo filters, inspired by Systrom's realization during a vacation in Mexico that people would share more if they felt their photos looked good.

The podcast recounts the rapid growth of Instagram following its launch on October 6, 2010. Within 24 hours, 25,000 users signed up, and the app's user base quickly expanded internationally. Despite initial technical challenges, the founders' resilience and the forgiving nature of their early adopters allowed Instagram to flourish. Systrom and Krieger emphasize the importance of creating an open network where users could follow anyone, which was a departure from the closed networks of other photo services at the time.

The episode also touches on the acquisition of Instagram by Facebook for $1 billion, a move that provided Instagram with the necessary infrastructure support to scale further. The founders reflect on the value of community interaction and transparency, learning from a controversial change in their terms of service that led to user backlash.