Miss Vine? Divine is bringing six-second videos back

Is Vine actually back? Not quite. Divine, a new social video app built around Vine’s famous six-second looping format, has opened to the public with more than 2.5 million classic Vine videos in its archive.

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The platform is independent of Vine, Twitter and X, but its pitch is deliberately familiar: short videos, creative constraints and a feed designed around human-made content. It also bans AI-generated videos, setting up a clear point of difference from TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.

Six seconds, no AI

Divine was created by former Twitter employee and Divine founder and chief executive Evan Henshaw-Plath, who is also known online as Rabble. The app allows users to create new six-second looping videos while browsing millions of clips preserved from the original Vine era.

The original Vine became one of the defining social platforms of the early 2010s before Twitter shut it down in 2017. Its tight six-second limit helped create a distinctive style of comedy and internet culture that later spread across other short-form platforms.

Divine is taking a harder line on artificial intelligence. Its verification system combines technology called ProofMode, machine-learning detection, user reports and human review to identify content suspected of being AI-generated.

ProofMode can cryptographically verify that footage was captured using a real camera and attach information such as timestamps and content signatures. Divine acknowledges that AI detection is not foolproof, but is using several layers of verification rather than relying on one system.

A different model for social media

Divine is built on the decentralised Nostr protocol rather than a traditional closed social network. That approach is intended to give creators greater control over their identity, followers and content instead of tying them permanently to one platform.

Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey has backed the project through grant funding from And Other Stuff. Dorsey does not own Divine and holds no equity in the business.

The structure also gives users greater choice over how their feeds operate. Divine offers different ways to browse content rather than relying entirely on one advertising-led recommendation algorithm.

Divine takes its first step towards brands

The public launch also introduces a more immediate question for the media and advertising industry: how Divine plans to make money without simply recreating the commercial model it is trying to challenge.

Its first move has already arrived. Taco Bell has become Divine’s first brand collaboration, using the platform as part of a nostalgia-driven campaign tied to 2016 and giving fans early access ahead of the wider public opening.

The partnership marks Divine’s first steps towards commercialisation. For advertisers, the experiment could test whether a platform built around creative limits, human-made content and less dependence on engagement algorithms can still offer brands meaningful scale.

Can Vine nostalgia turn into a real rival?

Divine now has to convert recognition of the Vine format into sustained use. That is a bigger challenge in a market where TikTok, Instagram and YouTube have trained audiences to move between short clips, longer videos, creators, shopping and live content inside the same app.

Its six-second restriction could also be its advantage. Rather than competing feature-for-feature with the biggest platforms, Divine is betting that simplicity, nostalgia and a firm stance against AI-generated content are enough to make social video feel different again.