Tech companies creating the best UGC content

How Gen Z-focused startups are turning users into viral growth engines

In 2025, user-generated content isn’t just marketing. It is the brand. The smartest tech companies aren’t buying attention, they’re earning it by empowering creators and building content machines around TikTok, Instagram, and creator-led storytelling.

From AI study tools to language apps with chaotic mascots, here are six companies turning UGC into serious growth.

1. Cluely: The “Cheat on Everything” AI Whisperer

What it is:
Cluely is an AI assistant that lives on your screen and feeds you answers in real time. Think of it like a voice in your ear during tests, meetings, or classes. Their tagline? “Cheat on everything.”

Why Gen Z loves it:
It’s provocative, unapologetic, and branded like a meme. It feels rebellious, which is exactly the point. Cluely is built to resonate with students and young pros who want shortcuts.

UGC Strategy:

• Recruited 50+ Gen Z interns and creators
• Filmed 200+ lo-fi, POV-style TikToks daily
• Prioritized quantity and experimentation over polish
• Paid creators $20–40 per video, plus bonuses for viral hits
• Reposted winning formats across a web of micro-accounts

Notable Campaigns:
Founder Roy Lee posted a viral TikTok using Cluely in a fake job interview. It resulted in real internship offers, got him expelled, and helped Cluely raise $15M before launch. Other hits included AI dating skits, funny “life hacks” and viral hypotheticals like “1 gorilla vs 100 men.”

TikTok & Instagram:
Instead of a single main account, Cluely runs dozens of themed and creator-run pages. The brand shows up everywhere under #Cluely on TikTok. On Instagram, @cluely is their central profile with the bio “Hyper-personalized AI that helps you before you even ask.”

2. TurboLearn: The Study Hack That Went Viral

What it is:
An edtech app that turns lecture recordings into notes, quizzes, flashcards, and summaries. It’s like your smartest study buddy, but AI-powered.

Why Gen Z loves it:
It turns the worst parts of school, missed classes, late-night study sessions, into “wow” moments. The app’s content dramatizes real struggles in a way that feels honest and helpful.

UGC Strategy:

• Created a network of 30+ TikTok and Reels accounts
• Posted in different styles from POV skits to demo reactions
• Built creator personas like @arina_turbolearn
• Repurposed TikTok content for Instagram Reels
• Generated 50M+ views and $100K+ in monthly revenue without paid ads

Notable Campaigns:
The “Hot Professor” series featured attractive actors giving lectures, followed by students showing off TurboLearn. Other big hits included reaction-style videos of students using the app, "what's your GPA jingle" and genuine testimonials from student creators. Their “Creator Partnership” program helped build a consistent stream of UGC.

TikTok & Instagram:
Top TikTok accounts include @turbolearnio, with multiple viral videos like the “Harvard professor freaked” skit (13M+ views). On Instagram, @turboai.official shares highlight reels, testimonials, and creator content. The brand dominates hashtags like #StudyTok and #studytips.

3. Fluently: Making English Learning Go Viral

What it is:
Fluently is an AI English tutor designed for non-native speakers. It helps with pronunciation, vocabulary, and casual conversation — all through interactive daily challenges.

Why Gen Z loves it:
The app makes language learning fun, relatable, and scrollable. Its creators turn grammar tips into meme content that’s easy to consume and easy to share.

UGC Strategy:

• Enlisted 11 ambassadors to run dedicated Fluently-themed TikTok and IG accounts
• Focused on short, high-variety content around language tips
• Used formats like “Learner vs Native,” “Homophone Quick Hits,” and “Stop saying ___”
• Tapped into humor, memes, and trends to blend education with entertainment
• Reached over 200M views and half a million shares within the first year

Notable Campaigns:
Viral hits included the “English Level Up” series and “Don’t say ‘I’m fine,’ say ‘I’m doing great.’” These clips balanced humor and practical advice, often ending with pronunciation challenges or slang decoding games.

TikTok & Instagram:
Fluently thrives through ambassador accounts like @fluently.kate and @fluently.robbert. These creators deliver daily English tips, duets, and challenge videos. The main company occasionally posts at @fluently.academy. You’ll find hundreds of clips under hashtags like #fluentlyapp and #englishlearning.

4. Duolingo: The Owl That Rules TikTok

What it is:
The most well-known language-learning app, famous for gamified lessons and its green owl mascot, Duo.

Why Gen Z loves it:
Duolingo doesn’t act like a brand on TikTok, it acts like an unhinged Gen Z creator. Duo dances, reacts, duets, and flirts. It’s chaotic in the best way.

UGC Strategy:

• Rebranded Duo as a meme-worthy character
• Used cosplay, office skits, and duet reactions
• Turned user jokes into ongoing content
• Played into TikTok trends and self-aware humor
• Built the most-followed TikTok in edtech with 16M+ fans

Notable Campaigns:
The “Live, Laugh, Love” office video and “Duo is Dead” funeral prank became instant classics. Another favorite was Duo flirting with the Scrub Daddy sponge in comment threads. These stunts gave Duolingo major viral spikes.

TikTok & Instagram:
Their TikTok (@duolingo) has 450M+ likes and consistent viral hits. Instagram (@duolingo) plays a secondary role but still boasts 5M followers. They once wiped and rebooted their IG strategy as an experiment, showing their comfort with risk.

5. Brainly: The Homework Help Plug

What it is:
A homework help platform that combines community Q&A with AI. Great for subjects like math, science, and history.

Why Gen Z loves it:
Brainly’s TikToks feel like your smart friend giving you a cheat code for school. It’s funny, helpful, and doesn’t take itself too seriously.

UGC Strategy:

• Recruited student ambassadors to post funny school-related videos
• Focused on POVs, memes, and study hacks
• Let users naturally show off how Brainly helps them
• Ran themed campaigns during back-to-school season
• Hit 25M+ organic views in just 3 months

Notable Campaigns:
A top TikTok showed a student failing at math until she remembers to use Brainly, then cuts to her glowing with relief. Brainly also ran “Homework Help Live” sessions where creators answered follower questions live on TikTok.

TikTok & Instagram:
The official TikTok (@brainly) and regional accounts like @brainly.ph spotlight ambassador content. Instagram (@brainly) is more meme- and tip-focused, and reposts top TikToks as Reels. Most comments are from real students hyping up the tool.

6. Notion: Productivity That’s Actually Aesthetic

What it is:
An all-in-one workspace app used for note-taking, project tracking, and personal planning.

Why Gen Z loves it:
Notion feels like the perfect blend of productivity and aesthetic. Students, startup founders, and content creators love showing off their dashboards.

UGC Strategy:

• Grew a global community of student ambassadors and creators
• Sparked hashtags like #NotionTok and #MakeWithNotion
• Highlighted template tours, study setups, and dashboard designs
• Turned user posts into community highlights
• Celebrated top creators and spotlighted their work

Notable Campaigns:
Their free-for-students campaign was spread entirely through creator-led TikToks. Another standout was their “MTV Cribs”-style Notion dashboard tours. Notion also leaned into trending memes about over-planning and productivity culture.

TikTok & Instagram:
The official TikTok (@notionhq) has 140K+ followers and features employee setups, quick tips, and community collabs. Their Instagram (@notionhq) shares user templates, tweet reposts, and template launches, all curated to show off how real people use the product.

What You Can Learn

These brands didn’t just go viral, they built content systems powered by creators and fans. The common playbook:

• Empower creators to speak in their voice
• Flood the feed with quantity and variety
• Turn product moments into relatable stories
• Ride the trends, don’t fight them
• Celebrate your community like they’re part of the team

The best UGC doesn’t feel like marketing. It feels like entertainment. If your product fits into someone’s life and helps them shine, they’ll tell the world for you.

Want to build brand love this year? Start by acting less like a company and more like a content creator. You can use Pamba to kick off this process and build your own content engine.

Know a brand crushing UGC that we missed? DM us or tag them, we’re always on the lookout for the next viral genius.