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"The primary value proposition of Mozi (today) is simple: It lets you know when you’re going to be in the same place (city or event) as someone you know." This

by giarc 2y ago

"The primary value proposition of Mozi (today) is simple: It lets you know when you’re going to be in the same place (city or event) as someone you know." This is fairly shortsighted. How many people actually travel from city to city. I bet the vast majority of people have a 3km bubble around their house and work and that's as far as they travel 90% of the time. Additionally, it tracks when you are going to an event. At that point, you are already out of the house around other people. I like the idea of an app that is "private. Non-performative. No public profiles. No public status competitions. No follower counts. No strangers." but I think it doesn't need to hinge on always going out and traveling. It should simply prompt you to check in with friends (not in the mental health status way) but simply "Hey, you haven't chatted with Sarah recently, say Hi" or "Steve's birthday is coming up, wish him a Happy Birthday". Simply just connecting with friends will perhaps result in "IRL" connections, but basing the whole app on connecting after those plans are made seems a bit "cart before the horse".

neogodless 2y ago
Makes me think back to Foursquare - it didn't tell anyone anything in advance but it did tell you who else was at your exact location. Depending on your permissions and if you would let it know about Facebook events, calendar events, etc. then you might get notifications or see when someone is going to be going to the same restaurant, etc. I think events is the key, while you're focused a bit on city. They do specify event so that's something, perhaps.
- tonystubblebine 2y ago
  It really made me think of Dopplr, which was one of the delighful and beautiful Web 2 apps that never quite broke out. The thing that feels different between now and Web 2 is that the Internet is so much bigger. So you can build an app that has a niche and it can still be pretty big. I was on the early beta for this app and it's great, especially if networking and travel are a big part of your life. I honestly have no idea if it even needs to be bigger than that although I know it can be.
  - saaaaaam 2y ago
    Dopplr is the first thing I thought of too.
- addicted 2y ago
  And Foursquare was great. But they shot themselves in the foot by trying to become Yelp and moving Foursquare into “Swarm”. Their problem was they couldn’t come up with a monetization strategy that was working and at the same time Yelp was raking in the valuations.

by giarc 2y ago

neogodless 2y ago

Makes me think back to Foursquare - it didn't tell anyone anything in advance but it did tell you who else was at your exact location. Depending on your permissions and if you would let it know about Facebook events, calendar events, etc. then you might get notifications or see when someone is going to be going to the same restaurant, etc. I think events is the key, while you're focused a bit on city. They do specify event so that's something, perhaps.

tonystubblebine 2y ago
It really made me think of Dopplr, which was one of the delighful and beautiful Web 2 apps that never quite broke out. The thing that feels different between now and Web 2 is that the Internet is so much bigger. So you can build an app that has a niche and it can still be pretty big. I was on the early beta for this app and it's great, especially if networking and travel are a big part of your life. I honestly have no idea if it even needs to be bigger than that although I know it can be.
- saaaaaam 2y ago
  Dopplr is the first thing I thought of too.
addicted 2y ago
And Foursquare was great. But they shot themselves in the foot by trying to become Yelp and moving Foursquare into “Swarm”. Their problem was they couldn’t come up with a monetization strategy that was working and at the same time Yelp was raking in the valuations.