TikTok, the social media giant known for its short-form videos, has just launched a new app called “Whee” that directly targets photo sharing with your closest circle.

This isn’t exactly surprising news. For a while now, TikTok has been testing the waters of photo-sharing territory. Back in April, they began rolling out TikTok Notes, an image-centric app with a focus on text integration. But Whee feels like a more direct competitor to Instagram, with a cleaner focus on friends and a stripped-down interface.

The news comes courtesy of Android Police and APKMirror founder Artem Russakovskii, who discovered Whee’s listing on the Google Play Store. According to the app’s description, Whee is all about capturing and sharing “real-life photos” with just your friends, fostering a space for authenticity and connection. Screenshots from the listing showcase a familiar layout: a photo viewfinder, a friends list for messaging, and a dedicated feed for browsing your friends’ shared moments.

Interestingly, Whee seems to be in a limited testing phase for now. Android Police reports that the app is only available on Android devices in “more than a dozen countries,” with no sign of a US release or an iOS version yet. This suggests that TikTok might be gauging user interest and collecting feedback before a wider rollout.

So, why is TikTok venturing into the photo-sharing territory? It’s likely a strategic move to capture a wider audience and establish themselves as a more comprehensive social media platform. While Instagram continues to dominate the photo-sharing landscape, Whee offers a potentially more intimate space for users to share with their closest friends, leveraging the existing trust network built within the TikTok ecosystem.