Can technology bring us together instead of isolating us?

We've building in the "together" direction: an app that only really works when you're physically in the room (Billbo - big screen in the venue, quick games and polls that give strangers an excuse to talk). Launching it taught me how deep the assumption runs that social = feed. Even explaining "there is no feed, the room is the network" breaks people's brains a little.

So I'm curious what this community thinks: 1. Has any app ever actually made you more present with the people around you? Which one? 2. Is proximity-based social a real category, or does the phone always win the staring contest? 3. If you could redesign social tech from scratch, what would "together" look like?

Genuinely asking.