Hello is an interest-based social network, helping users form communities and connect around the things they love. Designed to foster genuine connections around shared passions. Unlike traditional social platforms, Hello focused on positivity, community, and interest-based "personas"—allowing users to discover content and friendships aligned with what they love
As traditional social networks became overrun with toxic discourse, impersonal feeds, and performative sharing, users were craving a more authentic, human way to connect online. Hello Network saw an opportunity to reimagine social media around kindness, shared passions, and real community. We created a space where people could build friendships through what they love, rather than compete for likes.
The design of Hello Network was grounded in qualitative and behavioral research exploring how people form relationships online. The team conducted user interviews, ethnographic studies, and competitive analysis across major social platforms. Key findings included:
Users felt overwhelmed by negativity in their social feeds, leading to emotional fatigue and disengagement.
Algorithmic content often prioritized outrage or virality over relevance or personal connection.
Many users said they missed the early internet experience - forums, niche communities, and interest-based spaces where friendships formed naturally.
People expressed a desire for more control over what they saw and who they interacted with, rather than being passive consumers of endless content.
These insights led to a design philosophy centered on intentional interactions, positive reinforcement, and interest-driven discovery. Features like “personas” (interest-based identity tags), community moderation, and a feed free of algorithmic manipulation were all direct responses to this research.
Translating Hello Network’s vision into a usable product required tight collaboration between design, engineering, and community teams. The mobile-first app was designed to feel intuitive, joyful, and human-centered - a departure from the noise and complexity of traditional social platforms.
Key elements of the execution included:
Interest-Based Personas: Users selected "personas" to express their passions (like “Photographer,” “Gamer,” or “Dog Lover”), which shaped the content they saw and the communities they joined. This system replaced the traditional “friend/follow” model with a more natural, shared-interest discovery model.
Kindness-Centric Interactions: The interface limited passive engagement (e.g., no public like counts) and emphasized meaningful actions like commenting, gifting, and joining conversations—all designed to encourage positive social behavior.
Moderation by Design: Community guidelines were baked into the UX. Users could flag harmful behavior, but more importantly, the design aimed to prevent toxicity at the source by fostering shared norms and smaller, interest-based groups.
Visual and Motion Design: The app used playful colors, soft shapes, and micro-interactions to create a sense of warmth and delight - subtle cues that reinforced the emotional tone of the community.
Despite being an ambitious and idealistic product, Hello Network launched across multiple countries and built a dedicated early user base, offering an alternative vision of what social networking could feel like.