About Ori
Social media isn’t social anymore.
We were promised connection, but somewhere along the way, social media stopped being a tool. We scroll through everyone’s lives and feel invisible in our own. We are stuck in a phantom zone where you can see strangers living their lives, but it all feels out of reach.
You aren't broken. The system is.
If you feel exhausted by small talk or drained by the pressure to perform a perfect version of yourself, you’re not alone.
We are all trapped in the loneliness economy. Social media companies deployed the smartest minds on earth to turn our drive for connection into time spent on a platform. When you reach for your phone because you’re feeling alone, you are being out-computed by supercomputer-powered algorithms.
We were never their customer, we are the inventory.
Connection shouldn’t be a performance.
Connection shouldn’t require polishing your words, your photos, or your personality just to be accepted. You moved to Austin to build a life, not to look at one through a screen. But making friends as an adult is exhausting, and it is easy to feel like you are the only one putting in the effort.
Isolation shouldn’t be a business model.
A recommendation algorithm isn't actually for you. It's for the company profiting off you being stuck on your phone, turning your basic human desire for connection into endless time spent on their platform.
The phone should be a bridge.
We are building Ori to be the digital bridge to the physical world. We optimize for attendance, not attention. We want you to use our app to find your crew, and then we want you to put your phone away and experience your city.
Friendship comes from showing up.
We believe that you don't just find friends; you become one. But staring across a table at a stranger is intimidating. So, we changed the formula.
Friendship needs a project. We believe that shared activities and real-world experiences are the fastest ways to skip the small talk and build real chemistry.
Show up to something, not someone. Instead of the heavy pressure of showing up for a specific person, Ori lets you show up for a specific experience so you can connect with people who are just as motivated as you.
Shared experiences are the ultimate icebreaker. We embrace offlining. Getting out the door and navigating an activity side-by-side takes the pressure off. Actually doing something together creates the natural conversation and real-world chemistry that an algorithm simply cannot replicate.
You bring yourself. We handle the logistics, curate the experience, and vet for people who actually show up.
Our Crew
We built Ori because social media stopped feeling human. We wanted a place for real chemistry, not fake highlights. A transparent space to meet people as ourselves.
Our team bring the combined understanding of psychology, technology, and social experiences together with a shared passion for making something that elevates our humanity, instead of harvesting it.
Jackson (Hao) Cui, Ph.D, CEO
Favorite Austin Experience: Hitting the local hiking trails.
Why Ori: I want to make technology that increases the best of what humans can do.
Ali Mattu, Ph.D, Chief Science Officer
Favorite Austin Experience: Geeking out at trivia nights
Why Ori: Being with people you trust is one of the most powerful things you can do for your mental health.
