How Serbiz cracked TikTok: The AI-native gig marketplace redefining Gen Z hustling

In a digital landscape crowded by influencer-led campaigns and polished content, Serbiz stands out for what it refuses to do. The Philippines-born AI-native marketplace, co-founded by Gen Z entrepreneur Iyana Argañoza (pictured, left), has built an 80,000-strong user base without a single agency or influencer on its payroll - relying instead on raw storytelling, scrappy experimentation, and platform-native humour.

“Being Gen Z makes it easy for our audience to connect with us, because they can tell we’re part of the same world they live in,” Argañoza, who is also the CEO, told MARKETING-INTERACTIVE. “We’re casual, raw, and witty by nature, and that’s how we show up in our marketing. We tell stories the same way we’d tell them to our friends.”

Unlike most startups that depend on agencies or paid creators to scale, Serbiz has taken a radically in-house approach. “We never wanted to rely on agencies or influencers,” Argañoza explained. “Virality is easier for us because we know how our audience thinks since we are the audience. It’s our own personalities and experiences we’re putting out there, not a script someone wrote for us.”

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This self-contained playbook - a mix of TikTok virality, Telegram exclusivity, and meme-driven storytelling - has become a case study in Gen Z-led marketing agility. The brand’s voice, according to Argañoza, is “chaotic, street-smart, and fluid. It changes depending on the moment, but it always feels human.”

Hustle culture meets AI

Much of Serbiz’s early traction came not from paid campaigns, but from personal networks and trust. “Me and Heart were both batch presidents in university, so people already knew us and trusted what we were building,” Argañoza said, referring to her co-founder Aliexandra Heart Po (pictured, right). “We hit 80,000 users through back-to-back TikTok virality and word of mouth.”

A key retention driver has been Telegram, which serves as the brand’s loyalty hub. “It’s where users get early updates and stay close to what’s happening,” she said. “It’s one of the reasons retention stayed strong for us - it makes people feel like insiders, not just app users.”

At its core, Serbiz is more than a gig marketplace - it’s a reflection of Raket Culture, the Filipino term for side hustling. But unlike traditional gig platforms, Serbiz leverages AI to lower entry barriers for users who might not even know where to start.

Its AI agents - Earnie and Scout - act as personal guides. Earnie generates personalised hustles based on a user’s interests and experience, while Scout converts vague service requests into actionable gigs. “We don’t make them sound too techy,” Argañoza said. “Earnie creates personalised side hustles users can start today, and Scout helps structure messy needs into tasks. They make the app feel alive and personal.”

This product-led approach shapes Serbiz’s storytelling. “Our traction comes from real humans using the product every day,” Argañoza said.

The tech brings people in, but it’s the people who keep it moving. Both sides feed each other - that’s the story we tell.

Cracking the TikTok code

TikTok remains Serbiz’s marketing backbone - not for its reach, but for its authenticity. The company’s experimentation-driven approach paid off when it unexpectedly went viral in Vietnam. “We’d screenshot Vietnamese TikToks, send them to ChatGPT to translate, and if something resonated, we’d use the same caption,” said Argañoza. “We went viral a lot. That moment sums up how scrappy we are.”

In Vietnam, humour and timing proved essential. The team closely studied TikTok’s For You Page daily, adapting trends and humorous content that resonated with users to fit the Serbiz brand. “It wasn’t about perfection - we were just prioritising that we had to feel native,” she said.

The formula is simple yet deliberate: grab attention through the absurd. “Sometimes that means showing off the weirdest hustles on the app,” Argañoza added. “The funnier or more absurd, the better. Like someone offering a ‘boyfriend loyalty test for 100,000₫.’ People stay for entertainment but end up downloading to explore more.”

On Serbiz, users post an eclectic range of gigs that reflect the platform’s open-ended, personality-driven culture. These include requests such as pre-ordering an iPhone 17 Pro Max from a specific store, helping send 500 emails, fostering a dog for the weekend, or box-dyeing someone’s hair at home.

Others seek remote tech support to fix a slow laptop, tutoring in Adobe Photoshop basics, or editing TikTok gameplay clips for a channel. These are the kinds of side hustles that rarely find a home on traditional gig platforms - but they thrive on Serbiz.

Marketing without middlemen

Serbiz operates with a two-person marketing team: Argañoza on data and Heart on creative. “We move fast because we don’t wait for approvals or plans. We just test and adjust in real time,” said Argañoza. Their process blends instinct and analytics.

When a post goes viral, we instantly check our signups. We look for patterns in the posts that get attention and try to replicate them with tweaks.

Even expansion follows the same adaptive rhythm. “The tone and humour in Vietnam aren’t the same as in the Philippines, so we adapt,” Argañoza noted. “But no matter the language, the Serbiz vibe stays the same: playful, relatable, and rooted in unique stories.”

As Serbiz prepares for its next fundraising round - after securing pre-seed support from Antler - the team is positioning itself as an AI social startup rather than a mere gig platform. “We’re building tech that feels social,” said Argañoza. “The heart of Serbiz is still people, but the brains behind it are AI.”

Argañoza said the company’s vision extends beyond transactions, describing Serbiz as evolving into a lifestyle partner for hustlers - an app designed to be there whenever users need something, whether for extra income or quick help.

Its upcoming Serbiz 2.0 will include faster payments, improved AI agents, and user recognition programmes turning real hustles into community stories. As Heart puts it, “We’re proving that hustling isn’t just survival - it’s empowerment, and it’s scalable.”

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