LC: Let's Connect

"Loneliness is a condition equivalent to smoking 15 cigarettes a day". Loneliness is no more a term in dictionaries, it is a WHO-declared epidemic, and yet the only solutions in the market are social media platforms and AI chatbots. According to our research, these worsen rather than cure our loneliness. We researched and talked to thousands of people who have experienced loneliness, and the common pattern that was found was similar to us being hungry. Specifically, we feel hungry because of lack of food or too less food intake as compared to our body needs. Similarly, loneliness is a hunger for social connection. After finding out the common reasons why this imbalance occurs (moving to a new city, losing someone close to you, etc.), a search for solutions began, and finally the idea of an app that helps you with each of those categories was made. Predominantly, the app takes you on a journey from small talk -> big talk -> playtime -> introduction to hygge (the Danish concept) to make you feel more connected with people around you. How? The app suggests tasks at each stage for you to try with strangers (in case of small talk) and with your newly formed connections (for other stages) in a progressive way to deepen connections. After each task, the app asks whether you were comfortable doing the task, and based on it progresses you through stages. To help with calming your social anxiety, there are small nudges in the app that push the user to be able to complete these tasks. These are actually research-backed pieces of information before the task to calm the user's anxiety. Secondly, the app also rewards the user after every task or gives them a chance to earn a reward by verifying their task in the form of tricks and discounts as an incentive to continue doing these tasks. Lastly, the app also includes a link to UCLA loneliness score test (a standardized test that lets you measure your loneliness).