Many of the problems we've encountered as the result of social media emanate from business models that don't align with our individual and cultural wellbeing.

While we have plenty of evidence that hyper-scaled social technologies that use an advertising model don't incentivize prosocial outcomes, we also don't have a lot of viable alternatives. In the Silicon Valley startup world, social tech business models are VC-backed C-corps that fall into one of two categories: ad-based consumer technology or business-supported SaSS. This ignores many of the misaligned incentives such as 'growth at all costs towards an exit' as well as the viability of such a strategy when competing with free technology that is designed specifically to be addictive. 

Yet alternative social tech business models do exist. 

Design matters, but the business model is what truly determines the incentive structure, not just for builders but for those who use the technology.

We also want to consider the ethical implications of different business model options for building social technology. Truly prosocial technology can't be built without marginalized people in the room who can speak to the possible effects of design and business decisions. Therefore, different business models should include people who have been historically excluded from developing technology.

If we start to explore the many alternative structures that exist now, as well as what could be possible, we may find that social technology can be more than simply detoxified, it could be central to solving the issues of our time. This workshop is designed to bring together key people who are already thinking about this opportunity from a variety of perspectives and to foster real partnerships on a path to truly prosocial technology.

This is an invitation-only event. If you know people we should be including, please let us know!

In addition, we'd love to learn more about your thinking in advance of the meeting so we can start with some alignment-setting.