Omegle, a free online chat website that allowed users to socialise with others without requiring membership, has gone offline. Leif K-Brooks, the company's creator, remarked that running Omegle is "not financially or mentally right."

When the founder was 18 years old, he established the platform with the intention of establishing a means to "walk down a street" in a "global village" (internet context).

Omegle received approximately 150,000 page visits per day shortly after its original introduction. Just a year after its introduction, the website added a video conferencing capability in March 2010.

The website's homepage displayed a US flag.

Omegle's first version criticised the Chinese Communist Party, and the term "Xi Jinping Winnie the Pooh" appeared. Omegle used to enable users as young as 13 to access the website with parental permission.

The restrictions were amended in 2022 to limit website access to people over the age of 18. Omegle had various obstacles in the days leading up to its collapse, including attacks on children's online exploitation and abuse, as well as issues with moderation services.

Leif K-Brooks stated that his choice was influenced by the platform's widespread abuse.