All signal, no substance

VK’s Max app aims to replace WhatsApp, but the Russian celebrities paid to promote it have found just one selling point: it works

In a bid to promote its new messaging app, Max, the Russian tech giant VK has enlisted Internet-famous celebrities to sing its praises. But their boilerplate endorsements have found only one thing to be impressed with: the app works. The push comes amid reports that the Russian authorities may block popular foreign messengers like WhatsApp and try to push users toward a domestic alternative. Here’s what VK’s Max campaign looks like and the response it’s gotten.

VK, the company behind Russia’s largest social media network, is ramping up promotion of its new messaging app, Max. Currently in beta testing, it’s being pitched as a national messenger for Russia — and a potential replacement for WhatsApp, which the authorities are reportedly mulling blocking. “[The authorities] simply have no other way to force people to abandon familiar, convenient platforms in favor of a clunky, inconvenient state messenger,” said Sarkis Darbinyan, a lawyer with the digital rights group Roskomsvoboda.

To boost Max’s visibility, VK has enlisted high-profile performers and social media personalities, including Instasamka (Daria Zoteeva) and Valya Karnaval (Valentina Karnaukhova). Zoteeva, who’s recently sought to align herself with the Russian authorities — even denouncing fellow musicians — posted an Instagram story praising Max just days ago.

A similar post soon appeared on Karnaukhova’s account.

Both praised Max’s voice call quality. Zoteeva claimed she had a two-hour phone call in an underground parking garage without losing connection. Karnaukhova said the app maintained a crystal-clear signal “even on the move or in an elevator.”

Other local celebrities have joined the campaign, including comedian Denis Dorokhov, who — judging by a screenshot of his Instagram story — also praised Max’s performance while traveling.

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These heavy-handed promotions haven’t gone unnoticed — or unmocked. Some users and bloggers pointed out that Max is being praised for doing the bare minimum. The streamer JesusAVGN (Alexey Gubanov) joked that the app’s main selling point seems to be that it simply works. “Max will catch you even in an elevator,” he quipped — hinting that the app, like VK more broadly, transmits user data to the Russian authorities.

On June 30, VK announced that Max had reached one million registered users in just three months. Less than two weeks later, the company issued another press release, this time announcing the rollout of group video calls — and claiming the app had already surpassed two million users by early July. Whether that growth was due to marketing efforts or simply inflated numbers remains unclear.