John F Gomez

John F Gomez

Ex-Google Eng · solo building cool tech

About

Solo founder, Threaded Pixel Factory -- an independent deep-tech studio based in NYC. A decade in production Android engineering, including several years at Fitbit and Google. Left after a layoff in 2024 and decided to build what I actually wanted to exist. Meridian is my first shipped consumer product. I built it because I kept picking up my phone without knowing why, and everything I tried either blocked me (easy to route around) or tracked me (just made me anxious). Neither addressed the actual problem. Long term I'm building toward green infrastructure and the space sector. One product funds the next. I care about building things that don't deplete -- systems, products, people. That's the throughline. Reach out if you'd like to connect!

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Tastemaker
Tastemaker
Gone streaking
Gone streaking
Gone streaking 5
Gone streaking 5

Maker History

Forums

I built an on-device AI that asks why before you open your apps, here's what I learned

Meridian launches here on Tuesday. Before then I wanted to share some of what I figured out building it, because the hard problems weren't technical.

The technical problem was getting a local LLM running on Android without routing anything to the cloud. Solved that with llama.cpp compiled via NDK with a custom JNI bridge. Kairos runs entirely on your device.

The harder problem was behavioral. I don't think blockers work because they add friction without changing intent. You route around them in seconds or force yourself against your own volition in a war of attrition against yourself. Time trackers tend to not work because awareness without intervention just creates anxiety. Two extremes, neither felt like it addresses automaticity directly: The unconscious reach for the phone.

The intervention point I don't see anyone building at is the moment before the app opens. At least in a way that felt ethical to me. That's where Meridian lives.

5d ago

On-device AI asks why before you scroll - Your apps run you on autopilot. Meridian gives you back.

Meridian is a privacy-first Android app that puts a moment of intention between you and your most-used apps. Before you open Instagram or TikTok, Kairos, Meridian's on-device AI asks why you're there. No cloud. No data collection. No subscription. One-time purchase. Built for people who already know they have a phone problem and want a tool that respects their intelligence instead of gamifying their behavior. The AI runs entirely on your device. Your patterns stay yours.

We trained our AI to say "I don't know" — and engagement went up.

When we first built Murror's reflection AI, we optimized for insight. Every journal entry got a thoughtful, confident analysis. Pattern recognition, emotional connections, suggestions for growth.

Users were impressed. But something felt off.

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