This startup wants to help Gen X and baby boomers make friends and hang out IRL. Read its pitch deck.

Lukas Reinhardt is the CEO of Meet5.Courtesy of Meet5Meet5, an "in-real-life" social app based in Germany, expanded to the US this summer.The app wants to help Gen X and baby boomers make friends through activities and events.Read the pitch deck the startup used to raise its recent €8 million (roughly $9 million) Series A.Meet5 wants to help Gen X and baby boomers make more friends.Its app is focused on users over 40 who want to meet new people in their area with in-real-life (IRL) group activities such as concerts, yoga, hiking, or dancing.While anyone over 18 can technically join the app, the average age on Meet5 is 57, CEO Lukas Reinhardt told Business Insider.Reinhardt said some of Meet5's customers want to "feel young again," especially those whose children have moved out of the house."Finally, they have time for themselves again," Reinhardt said. "They want to do stuff they didn't do for 20, 30 years."The Frankfurt, Germany-based company expanded its app to the US this summer and exclusively told BI that it raised a €8 million (roughly $9 million USD) Series A investment from European venture capital firm Peak to help it do so.Meet5 isn't the only friendship app raising capital and trying to help connect people in group settings. Competitors such as apps that match strangers and put them in groups like 222 and Timeleft, or local-events platform Pie, have launched in the past few years, and there are older mainstays in the space like Meetup.Reinhardt believes that Meet5's focus on older users and community will set it apart from the friendship apps already in the US market. Meet5's users attend an average of four events each month, Reinhardt said.Originally founded in 2017 as Go Crush, a dating app, Reinhardt and cofounder Kai Burghardt pivoted to group experiences focused on users over 40 at the end of 2019.Reinhardt said the company became profitable "by mid-2024 for about a year" before its Series A. Now, Meet5 is spending its cash to grow the app and company. Meet5 has 65 employees, and plans to expand hiring in the US.The startup's primary revenue model is its premium subscription, which costs about $12.50 a month and unlocks features like private messaging, invite-only meetups, and the ability to filter events by category."It's normally way harder to monetize friendship apps," Reinhardt said, adding that people would "rather pay for love than friends."But Reinhardt feels good about his friendship app's freemium model. About 12% of Meet5's monthly users are paid, Reinhardt said.Read the pitch deck Meet5 used to raise its Series A:Note: Some details have been updated, such as Meet5's number of registered users, participants, and funding. The deck below includes two additional slides (pages 9 and 10) that were added after Meet5 expanded to the US.Meet5 is an IRL social appMeet5Its deck starts by outlining stats about the startupMeet5Here's what the slide says:Europe's largest leisure app. Enabling members to connect in real-life.Community+100% YoY2.5M MembersAvailable in four languages across 7 European countries and the USSustainable, strong increase in the subscriber baseMinimum contract period 6 months with an average order volume of over €100Traction40k Activities per Month300k Participants per monthUsers attend an avg. of 4 meetings per month85% of users remain actively engaged 6 months after their first meetingGrowth+100% Team GrowthInvestment by European venture capital firm Peak to accelerate growthFocus on international expansion across Benelux, France and the USStrengthening community focused product developmentCustomer Satisfaction25.000+ Reviews4.7/5 Average RatingImpressive average rating across both app storesBest-rated app for building friendships and real-life connections, trusted and loved by our usersThen Meet5 lays out a problem it says people are facingMeet5"We're so connected, yet so lonely," the slide says.Here are the other problems the slide includes:Difficult to meet new peopleMaking true friends is harder than everDigital Media lacks real life connectionsEndless, aimless chattingMeet5 pitches itself as a way to 'discover new friendships'Meet5The deck then explains how Meet5 worksMeet5Here's what the slide says:A thousand friends at hand. Use online to go offline together and have fun.Real Life: Meet new people directly in real life through shared leisure activities — without virtual small talk.Small Groups: The small groups ensure everyone feels comfortable right away, creating a relaxed and friendly atmosphere.Community: Join our large, vibrant community and share stories, find support, and feel a true sense of belonging.Safety: Joining group and public gatherings enhances safety, which is especially important for women.Meet5 uses a freemium model to make moneyMeet5Meet5 says that "maximum growth" is enabled by its freemium model that includes a paid subscription.Meet5 emphasizes its focus on communityMeet5"We found the secrets of community-building, putting us ahead of the competition," the slide says.The slide says that Meet5 has over 1,250 "community captains" who volunteer to "strengthen the local community."Here are the app's demographics, according to the deck:Female 56%, Male 44%80% single57 average age100k new users per month600k activities per yearIt then breaks down the retention of paid users:Retention of golden cohort after joining the 1st meeting:Month 1: 100%Month 2: 92%Month 3: 89%Month 4: 88%Month 5: 86%Month 6: 85%Then the deck goes deeper into the app's tractionMeet5Here's what the slide says:Already #1 in Europe — On Our Way to Global ConnectionsTotal Registered Users: 2,500,000 (May 2025)Growth: +1364%It then breaks down several year-over-year stats:500k Monthly Active Users (+44% YoY)300k Participants per month (+52%)40k New Activities August 2025 (+47%)2.5M Members (+50%)Meet5 outlines its plans to expand to the USMeet5Here's what the slide says:Where Shared Activities Spark New Bonds — For the 40+ Community.Locations in the US:Austin (TX), Baltimore (MD), Boston (MA), Charlotte (NC), Chicago (IL), Columbus (OH), Corpus Christi (TX), Dallas-Fort Worth (TX), Germantown (MD), Miami (FL), Nashville (TN), Northern (VA), Philadelphia (PA), Pittsburgh (PA), Raleigh (NC), Tampa (FL), Washington DC, Worcester (MA).Activities:Music & danceFood & drinkOutdoorCultureFun gamesMarkets & festivalsSports & fitnessOtherUnique Joins:DACHBENELUXFranceUSAThen it goes into its early traction in the USMeet5Here's what the slide says:Scaling in North America since July 2025+30k registered users are using Meet5 to connect with people in real life550 activities have taken place and 8,250 IRL connections have been made93% active user retention: Once we get them, they stay around50 Captains take care of the growing community'Let's combat loneliness!' is how the deck endsMeet5Meet5 includes in the slide that it has 65 employees, made up of 15 nationalities.Read the original article on Business Insider