Orkut, the once-popular social networking platform that shut down in 2014, could be making a comeback.
Founder Orkut Büyükkökten has called on former users to register their support for bringing the platform back, with a renewed focus on friendship, community and genuine human connection.
Founder Asks Users to Support Orkut’s Return
In a post on X, Büyükkökten asked people to visit Orkut.com, add their names in support of a revival, and invite others to do the same.
However, he has not confirmed whether a new version of Orkut is already under development.
There is also no launch date or guarantee that the platform will actually return.
The internet should help us find our people. Friendship. Community. A place to belong.
Help me bring Orkut back in that spirit. Add your name at https://t.co/FO48fJMjEq and share your supporter card with someone you want to bring along.
Love,
Orkut pic.twitter.com/zesE18Y3Fd— Orkut Buyukkokten (@orkut) October 8, 2026
Orkut Was Once Huge
Orkut originally launched in 2004 as a side project created by Büyükkökten while he was working at Google.
The platform became particularly popular in Brazil and India, eventually reaching hundreds of millions of users.
However, it gradually lost ground to Facebook.
Google shut Orkut down in September 2014 as it shifted attention to services such as Google+ and YouTube.
Founder Criticizes Modern Social Media
In a letter published on Orkut’s website, Büyükkökten criticized the direction social media has taken over the past two decades.
He argued that algorithms and AI-generated content have weakened the sense that users are interacting with real people.
His proposed alternative is a social network centered around authentic identities, meaningful relationships, and communities, rather than engagement-driven feeds.
This Is Not His First Attempt at a Comeback
Büyükkökten returned to social networking in 2016 with a platform called Hello, which connected users around shared interests.
Hello reportedly reached more than 2 million downloads, but it shut down in 2020.
By comparison, Orkut reached roughly 300 million active users at its peak.
In 2022, Büyükkökten also said he was working on “something new.”
He later said the project would use AI and machine learning to help people connect and build communities, although that platform has yet to launch.
Orkut’s Return Is Still Uncertain
For now, the latest move seems more like a public-interest campaign than a confirmed product launch.
Büyükkökten is trying to measure how much demand still exists for Orkut before revealing what comes next.
Whether this turns into a full relaunch remains unclear, but the fact that Orkut.com is once again actively asking users to sign up has revived speculation around the return of one of the internet’s earliest major social networks.
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