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Apps that wear the builder's values on their sleeves.

When anyone can build their own apps with AI, it matters even more which apps they choose to build, and how they choose to build them. Human Shaped exists so that the future continues to be shaped by humans.

Read the principles About Human Shaped

Working software, in the stores today.

Every app built this way, and how to add yours

Human-shaped problems are ones worth solving.

A human-shaped problem is the gentle hum of worry or concern you have about an area of your life. It has gone unsolved for months or even years, and you cannot do it yourself with the tools you have now. AI makes it tempting to treat every problem as a database waiting for the right code, the habit Nilay Patel calls software brain.

Computer-shaped

Sees the world as disparate data points to be aggregated, quantified, and leveraged.

“I want to measure the amount of negative sentiment online for any given public figure.”

Human-shaped

Sees the world as interrelated stories to be told, experienced, and added to.

“I lack inspiration for what to do with my child to entertain them without screens. I need something that will constantly suggest new things to do that cater to both of our interests.”

More problems of each shape

Humanity is inefficient, and that is the point.

Learning is inefficient too. We have great tools for making it better, and our values decide where those tools belong. Why build this way

Every round of building makes the same three moves.

Write
Writing gets it out of your head. Values, features, and feedback go where you and your agent can both read them.
Play
Playing makes your thinking tangible. You use what came back on a real device, and you decide whether it works.
Publish
Publishing lets other people play too. A human-shaped problem is rarely yours alone, and the people who use your work tell you what to write next.

The method, week by week

Bring a problem only people can solve.

A cohort is five weeks of building your own app beside other people, with one live session each week inside Google Meet, and it is free.

See the cohorts

  • Build on your ownCopy the Universal App Template on GitHub, and work through its stages at your own pace.
  • Host an eventHost a meetup or a day of building, or find one near you.
  • Sign in with GitHubTo see your cohort, or to keep your own app on Human Shaped.