merge · 2024 · mobile ux
A self-initiated concept on loneliness in the digital age. Merge puts strangers on a voice call and leaves out everything else, from profiles to video to the endless feed. For the length of that call, two lonely people are less alone.
Role
Platform
Figma
industry
year
2024
001 _ Problem
Social media promises connection but often deepens loneliness. Passive feeds and curated profiles take the place of real conversation.
002 _ approach
Merge keeps the smartphone and changes how people use it. Voice takes the place of video, and anonymity takes the place of profiles. Without those features, loneliness becomes easier to admit.
003 _ outcome
Merge proposes a different default for social design. People talk instead of performing, and nobody has a profile to maintain. The whole app comes down to one button that starts a call.
qualitative research
Interviews and questionnaires validated online research: Social media promised connection. It empowered isolation.
voice as the missing link
When asked about their most meaningful interaction, 91% named real-time voice or in-person interaction. Text and images could not replace the warmth, nuance, and presence of a human voice.
anonymity reduces pressure
Participants consistently said they'd speak more honestly with a stranger they'd never see again than with people they followed.
Anonymity removes social consequence.
conceptual angle
Two strangers are connected through a voice call.
Research pointed to two potential angles to tackle loneliness: voice and anonymity. Merge is built around both, with everything else stripped away. The case study explores how restraint - no video, no chat, no scrolling - becomes the feature.
anonymity
Profiles built from colors, not images.
A profile without a face. Color replaces the photo as the unit of identity. Present enough to be remembered, abstract enough to stay anonymous.
style guide
A tinted, pastel colorway balances tranquility and significance.
Archive
Calls remembered through reflection, not recording.
After each conversation, users log up to five emotions and write a short recap. The act of remembering becomes part of the experience.