Upon opening a social media app like Facebook and Instagram, most users are greeted with an endless feed of happy, perfect moments.
Inpathy, an social media platform set to release this year, aims to bring the human experience online with an emphasis on sharing authentic moods—both good and bad.
The platform’s founder Ziarekenya Smith feels that the current social media culture of sharing only life’s wins is not in line with reality, according to TheGrio.
“Life is a series of peaks and valleys. This is normal. This is human. This allows us to empathize with each other. It’s like a huge element is missing from social media,” said Smith in an interview with The Black Wall Street Times. “As human beings we’re colorful with a full range of emotions. So, we cut off this whole half of humanness of being sad, angry, jealous, or insecure. We push it aside. It’s almost like they want us to be robots. And we can’t do that.”
Inpathy users can only post video and audio stories. This limitation is intended to stimulate connection as users will be able to pick up on the “subtle human elements” of a person’s expression and voice when playing their stories. Another feature that distinguishes Inpathy from mainstream social media outlets is the lack of traditional followers. Inpathy ditches the popularity contest inherent in follower counts in favor of users connecting on an individual basis through direct messages and responses to other users’ stories. Once a user has made personal contact with another person, they can add that person to their “circle.”
Although the platform hopes to reduce the stigma surrounding people sharing a full range of emotions online, Inpathy is first and foremost a social media app—not a mental health one.
Inpathy is currently crowdfunding with a goal of a quarter of a million dollars towards hiring talent and finishing app development. Once the goal is met, the company will unveil Inpathy beta. Contributors who donate $10 or over will be invited to the early version of the platform.
“Right now if we look at the social media landscape, we use YouTube for TV, TikTok for shorts, Instagram for photos, Twitter for news and trends, Facebook for entertainment, LinkedIn for business, Headspace for meditation, Tinder for dating,” Smith told TechCrunch. “But where do you go for the raw experience, and to just be yourself?”
