A Phone Screen Time App That Actually Works
Hey, my name is Hank, and I graduated from Harvard Divinity School (MTS '26) studying consciousness and mysticism in world religions.
Something I found out during my time at grad school was that it was quite literally impossible to overcome my phone addiction by myself. I tried everything, and my conclusion was that my brain was just wired in a way where it would succumb to the power of screen dopamine every time.
But when I looked into solutions already out there, I realized they were counterproductive and focused on prevention rather than awareness. How could I ever grow out of using an app blocker when its very purpose was to make me dependent on it? The frontier of this industry is currently all about how to make a blocker unbypassable, setting up iron-clad rules for yourself, and attempting to use dopamine tricks (like streaks) to try and keep you off your phone.
But I don't want that. Why would I contribute to intentionally losing trust in my future self?
If I learned anything from divinity school, it's that through proper cultivation of consciousness and awareness, it's possible to undo unwanted habits.
But I also know through personal experience that, for some people, it's perhaps impossible to achieve this alone.
That's why I'm setting out to solve this issue through an app that brings conscious awareness to phone usage through community rather than through shame and dopamine-hijacking.
I have no software experience, so I started vibecoding. I pulled together some friends, and we're getting ready to launch the iOS version of our app, PhonePact.
Now, there's a lot of social accountability apps out there already. How are we different?
We prioritize awareness and self-trust. All we do is send out a notification to members of your trusted circle when you reach a certain point. The idea is to get eyes on your screentime, only when you reach a chosen threshold, and every 30 minutes afterward as well. Hopefully, this continued visibility will help you get out of lonely addiction spirals where all that exists is you and the phone.
We have other ideas as well, but for now, trying to keep it simple for the MVP. Please let me know if you have any ideas or would like to help!
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