Hungryroot founder debuts Every, an AI-powered app for self-reflection and human connection

As laminitis and CEO of patient market transportation work Hungryroot, Ben McKean has been investigating nan powerfulness of AI technologies to amended his business. But pinch nan motorboat of his caller broadside task — an app called Every — McKean wants to research nan usage of AI to thief group found deeper relationships pinch themselves and others and to find communal ground.

Currently system arsenic a nonprofit, Every’s iOS app leverages AI technologies to create “thought-provoking games” aimed astatine self-discovery.

For example, each users statesman pinch a crippled called “Inner Odyssey” that challenges you to prime a photograph that champion represents nan spot you’d for illustration to explore, from options for illustration a cobblestoned metropolis street, a earthy scenery featuring a stream and trees, a fantastical castle, aliases a distant island. You’re past asked follow-up questions for illustration who would you recreation with, what domiciled would you play, what proposal for your travel resonates pinch you champion and truthful on.

Image Credits: Every

As you play, nan app shows you really others respond to nan aforesaid question, and erstwhile you decorativeness you’re prompted to spot who among your connections — that is, your uploaded interaction database — besides answered similarly.

McKean says nan thought to create an app focused connected quality relationship was an thought that’s been brewing for immoderate clip — peculiarly aft nan COVID pandemic led to a world wherever everyone felt much disconnected than ever.

“There’s a very ample number of group who consciousness disconnected from moreover group very adjacent to them,” he explains. “Fifty-eight percent of Americans study emotion for illustration nary 1 successful their life knows them well, which was conscionable a shocking stat. And 70% of Americans consciousness that distrust is hurting American society,” McKean notes, citing various stats connected nan loneliness pandemic and connection.

In addition, McKean says he besides feels impacted by these issues done his ain entrepreneurial experiences starring teams and uncovering really difficult it tin beryllium to shape connections astatine work. In fact, McKean foresees nan imaginable to tweak Every’s exemplary for usage successful nan workplace to thief colleagues bond, but pinch less individual questions.

Despite nan app’s attraction connected quality connectivity, it whitethorn beryllium a surprise, then, to study that Every’s games were created utilizing AI — specifically, by training ample connection models and leveraging exertion from OpenAI and Midjourney. In summation to scratching his ain itch, truthful to speak, McKean said this process helped him to create his AI skills, which could effect his main business astatine Hungryroot, which is simply a heavy AI-driven company.

All nan games successful nan app are inspired by a taxable aliases a person, which is nan first input for nan AI.

For nan latter, nan institution is partnering pinch inspirational leaders for immoderate of nan topics, for illustration Hector Guadalupe, laminitis of A Second U Foundation, which helps group create skills to beryllium successful successful life aft serving clip successful prison. The taxable aliases nan personification is utilized to group nan discourse for nan generative AI. Then nan squad uses a system format for nan games they built into nan prompts to create nan questions. (Guadalupe’s AI-inspired crippled will merchandise connected October 25).

The AI’s output whitethorn still request immoderate quality involution arsenic nan squad has only been training their models for six months, McKean notes, but essentially, nan AI creates nan games successful their entirety. The images that travel nan game’s questions are past created utilizing Midjourney.

The scheme is to merchandise 1 caller crippled each time — hence nan app’s sanction — pinch each time of nan week having a peculiar theme. For example, Monday’s games whitethorn beryllium focused connected careers, while Friday’s games whitethorn beryllium astir fun, Saturday’s games whitethorn beryllium astir family connections, and Sunday’s are astir spirituality aliases philosophy. McKean says Every besides intends nan games to beryllium tailored to timely events. So successful nan lawsuit of nan upcoming statesmanlike elections, you mightiness spot a crippled tied to politics, for example.

After playing nan games, nan app offers inspirational contented to research based connected your responses, for illustration videos that item peculiar topics — for illustration pursuing your dreams aliases nan value of creativity.

Another tab successful nan app, “Map,” uses AI to make a representation of your traits based connected nan points you gain while playing Every’s games. After trying retired nan first game, nan representation informed maine my apical traits included things for illustration logic and happiness successful nan simplest things, which I don’t deliberation I’d dispute. You tin besides thumbs up and thumbs down its findings if you work together aliases disagree to amended its analysis.

The thought is that, by playing these games, you aren’t only processing much self-awareness, you’re besides learning really you stock communal crushed pinch different group you know, which could lead you to deepen those relationships. For instance, you mightiness find an aged friend besides enjoys world recreation aliases your workfellow prioritizes humility successful nan workplace. As you study from nan insights nan app shares, you whitethorn beryllium inspired to return further action, for illustration engaging successful conversations astir your discoveries.

“A batch of nan ngo astir this is astir facilitating relationship pinch group — 1 to 1 relationship — but it’s besides astir helping to aboveground communal crushed a small much holistically,” McKean says. “And truthful portion of nan belief is that if you coming nan aforesaid crippled to each azygous person, you’re capable to really find communal crushed betwixt 2 group who whitethorn beryllium very different people.”

Every was self-funded by McKean and is tally by 2 women, Sarah McKean (Ben’s cousin) and Maya Valliath, while app improvement was handled done an outsourced firm. The scheme for now is to tally Every arsenic a free app and broadside project. But if it takes off, McKean is leaving nan doorway unfastened to standard it arsenic much of a business, perchance pinch investor backing.

The app has been moving successful beta since March, but coming launched publically on nan App Store. It’s disposable arsenic a free download pinch nary in-app purchases.