Let’s party use social media like it’s 1999.

Hey! We are a group of neighbors building a simple social media app that’s old school (like us). We are digital natives who grew up with technology and remember social media before it was flooded with AI, ads, and influencers. Before apps tracked and monetized our every scroll, view, and tap. We actually used the apps back then, and even liked some of them!

Today we (mostly millennials) are busier than ever balancing work, aging parents, and young kids. We no longer share a neighborhood nor college campus with our closest friends. Some of our favorite people live across the country or world. If we’re lucky to be in the same area, calendar Tetris makes it hard to hang out as often as we’d like. 

We catch up on text when we can. We send each other memes. Some of us are connected on social media apps but none of us post anything anymore. We no longer trust the dominant platforms with our photos, videos, nor words for fear that they may be misused or end up on the dark web. Other times we worry that our unedited, unfiltered posts are no match for the glamorous, polished videos that dominate our social feeds. We still doom scroll (oh boy do we doom scroll) but are starting to question that habit too. Did we really want to consume that content or was it just out of boredom and habit? How do we tell what’s real, what’s fake, and what was made with AI? And is this really how we want to spend our spare time? 

We originally used social media to connect with our friends… and we still yearn for a way to do this well. Now more than ever! We want to be a part of each others lives, a part of the moments in between phone catch ups and in-person reunions. We believe in the power of using technology for good—but we want and need a space we can trust. We don’t want everything we do online to be used as data points to sell us things we don’t need. We want a space that commits to consent and transparency; one that will conduct itself responsibly.

We couldn’t find such a space. So we built one ourselves. We call it EFGH.

EFGH is a simple social media app that’s one part gratitude journal shared with friends and one part social media TV. We’ve reimagined what good social media can look and feel like, designed every feature with intention, and built something new from scratch.

The app opens with a simple question, “What felt good today?” Daily notes can be paired with unfiltered photos. Imperfect grammar is part of the point—it’s a place for authenticity, not perfection. Friends are invited to send notes back, swapping out one-tap acknowledgement with real conversations that foster stronger relationships. There are no public profiles and no follower counts. As such there are no influencers, celebrities, and businesses nor brands on the app. EFGH is not a great place for making new friends or building a following, but is an excellent place for getting closer to the people you already know and like.

We write a weekly newsletter talking about the design, UX, and product choices we’ve made to keep this digital space free of clutter, addiction, and bad vibes. The newsletter is a great way to understand the choices made by other platforms and a tool to think criticality about what we opt into and normalize. We hope these notes will eventually help newcomers (the next generation!) get better acclimated to social media.

The app keeps its lights on by accepting donations, allowing companies to sponsor our weekly e-mail newsletters, and by hosting in-person community dinners. To enjoy all the great benefits of practicing gratitude, getting closer to your favorite people, and enjoying genuinely great content from creators who don’t use AI, please request an invite to the beta version of the app. We hope to see you there.

Warmly yours,

—A handful of neighbors in and around Rockville, Maryland

EFGH is great for people who want:

  • Stronger relationships with people they know and like

  • Better mental health and resilience

  • Non-AI generated content

  • Privacy

  • Consent

  • Transparency

Not great for people who want:

  • Social comparisons and anonymous lurking

  • Addictive, black box algorithms

  • AI-generated content

  • Hyper-targeted ads

  • Others to use and own their content and likeness

  • Data centers to power AI ambitions

Social media doesn’t have to be awful. Why does it feel so deeply misaligned with our needs and wants?

It comes down to who owns it, how it makes money, and why it is isn’t governed.

What exists today:

  • Ownership: Large social media platforms are controlled by a combination of billionaires, investors, and public markets with the explicit goal of maximizing the wealth of owners.

  • Monetization: Platforms make money by selling advertising. The more specific the data points for targeting, the higher the price a platform can charge its advertisers. As a result, platforms track every session, scroll, click, tap, and more.

  • Governance: The harmful impacts of social media are well known but platforms don’t proactively self-regulate. Governments are slow to pass laws that serve the public good and to hold platforms accountable for the damage to public health.

What we’re doing differently:

  • Ownership: EFGH is privately owned and is committed to not raising money nor being acquired. The company will remain unbought and unbossed and aims to maximize value for the community.

  • Monetization: EFGH does not track user behavior and is unable to offer advertisers data points for advanced targeting. Instead, the company makes money by allowing advertisers to sponsor its weekly newsletters and community dinners.

  • Governance: EFGH is governed by a community of neighbors who want safer, more productive, and more joyful ways of using social media. The community is diverse in age, ethnicity, and profession and includes parents of many school-aged kids.