Theme

From Attention to Intention

(Attention, Presence, & the Future of Social)

As trust in big platforms declines, people are turning to smaller, more intimate online spaces. Group chats, private servers, and close-friend circles are quietly reclaiming what social media once promised: real connection with people you know, space to be yourself, and conversation over performance. It’s a shift from broadcast to bonding — and it might just be where the next chapter of the internet begins. Against the backdrop of a social media ecosystem defined by algorithms, surveillance, and ads, group chats are a breath of fresh air and a return to a simpler internet. Together we’ll explore how messaging can serve as the foundation for a new era of social. One that’s intentionally designed to facilitate meaningful and healing connection.

Presented with Project Liberty and the School of Radical Attention.