With 275,000 active users, MassRoots joined the ranks of publicly traded companies in the legal marijuana industry. Boasting over 75 million user interactions, this “semi-anonymous” app-based community is showing a paradigm shift in the way cannabis is approached on a business and social level. Looking at the MassRoots website and referring back to our interview with MassRoots CEO, Isaac Dietrich, they believe that they can capitalize on the expanding market and grow alongside the legalization of cannabis.

Who’s MassRoots?

Haven’t heard of MassRoots yet? It is a social networking app (available on both iOS and Android) that offers a similar environment to Instagram, but involves a community where users are not concerned with any stigma associated with the smoker lifestyle. Instead of uploading content on major platforms that makes you sound like a ‘stoner’ to some of your coworkers or your cousin’s friend’s roommate that added you two years ago, you can surround yourself in an environment that casually (and positively) supports the culture revolved around using cannabis. Share photos, updates, and videos in a space that retains a certain level of anonymity for its users. The key to comfort is that MassRoots (OTC:MSRT) doesn’t ask users for full names or email addresses that commonly are required from other apps and websites. This maintains the mask of “semi-anonymous” and has so far proven beneficial in the aim to make users feel more comfortable with their interactions on MassRoots and being open about their interaction with cannabis.

Market Growth

ArchView’s market research projects that the cannabis industry could grow to a $10.2 billion industry by 2018. With 23 states currently prescribing medical marijuana, more states are sure to follow suit soon. After MassRoots took on Apple and won the fight regarding social apps involving cannabis on the App Store, the societal shift is quiet but obviously present.

MassRoots was launched in July of 2014 and had previously raised six figures in seed money. Opening their stock to public trade early this morning, MassRoots is officially the first marijuana tech IPO in history. With over 50 million shares released starting at $0.10 per share on the OTCBB Exchange, we will see how far this stock progresses in the future.

The Future

Self titled as “The Voice of the Cannabis Community”, MassRoots aims to scale to one million users in the near future and plans to offer an API in order to develop games, apps and other cannabis industry systems into the platform. There are also talks that there will be a “self-service advertising portal” similar to Facebook.

There is currently a beta available for MassRoots For Business that seeks to bring in interesting advertisers. We aren’t expecting for you to deal with annoying insurance girls or airline destinations on the platform, but businesses that offer products and a lifestyle that is directly associative to MassRoots users. Expect to see targeted sponsor posts, order ahead systems, dispensary menus and in-app purchase abilities of ancillary products.

With at least 8 states gearing up to have some form of cannabis legalization on the ba lot in 2016, there is a high likelihood that the marijuana industry will have a high probability of expanding.

It seems like the green has planted roots and will only continue to grow.