The Gamification of Exploration: A Cautionary Tale

Outernet, a social media-based discovery platform, promises to turn your saved posts into real-world adventures. On its surface, this sounds like a noble pursuit – encouraging people to put down their screens and explore the world around them. However, as we examine Outernet more closely, it’s clear that there’s more at play here than just a desire to get people outdoors.

At its core, Outernet is an app that uses AI to track your saved posts and turn them into a list of activities for you to try. This solves the problem of forgotten social media inspiration – no longer will you have to scroll through your feeds only to forget about that amazing restaurant or hike you wanted to try. But what’s more interesting is how Outernet positions itself as a solution to getting people off their couches and into the real world.

The founders, Danielle Egan and Athena Leong, are experienced event organizers who have created citywide scavenger hunts in San Francisco and turned viral pranks into exclusive events. Their experience informs their approach to Outernet: they’re trying to create a motivation engine for getting people off the couch. This is where things get interesting – as Egan and Leong chat with participants in their scavenger hunts, they realize that what draws people in isn’t necessarily the adventure itself, but the excuse to go outside.

Outernet’s approach raises more questions than it answers. By leveraging AI to track our saved posts and encouraging us to complete real-world activities, are we simply creating a new form of gamification – one that further erodes our connection to the world around us? The founders’ enthusiasm for community events is admirable, but their focus on turning these events into a competitive experience raises concerns about the long-term impact.

Will Outernet’s users be motivated by a genuine desire to explore and discover, or will they simply be driven by the need to accumulate stamps and badges? And what about the consequences of creating an ecosystem that rewards people for completing activities rather than encouraging them to engage with their surroundings in a more meaningful way? The app was born out of the founders’ experience designing scavenger hunts – events that rely on a competitive element to drive participation.

This raises questions about the nature of gamification itself: are we creating a culture where people participate in activities not because they’re genuinely interested, but because they want to earn rewards or badges? And what about the role of social media in all of this – are platforms like Outernet simply perpetuating our addiction to screens and social validation?

As Egan and Leong continue to experiment with new ideas, it’s clear that they’re onto something. However, as we consider the future of Outernet, let’s not forget the potential pitfalls of gamification and the importance of creating experiences that genuinely encourage people to engage with their surroundings in a meaningful way.

Ultimately, the success or failure of Outernet will depend on how users respond to its approach. Will they be driven by a genuine desire to explore and discover, or will they succumb to the pressure to accumulate stamps and badges?