☀️ SaaS - Serendipity-as-a-Service

90 second post

Happy New Year!! Welcome to your first 90-Second-Post of 2025.

Read time: 1 min 15 seconds

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I love SaaS.

No, not software-as-a-service. I mean serendipity-as-a-service.

If you’re like me (and most of my friends), you’ve probably deleted Instagram or TikTok multiple times, sworn off doomscrolling, and tried hacks like turning your phone to greyscale—hoping it would help you focus. Spoiler: it didn’t.

We’re in a world where our attention feels more like a public commodity than a personal choice. Instead of meaningful time with loved ones, we spend hours glued to screens, half-distracted and doomscrolling our way into oblivion.

Loneliness is everywhere. In 2021, over 12% of Americans said they had no close friends. Back in 1990, that number was just 3%. It’s a trend that feels… pretty depressing.

During the pandemic, I tried Lunchclub. At first, it was fun—I got to meet people from all over the world. But after a while, virtual networking felt transactional and exhausting. It turns out that meaningful connection can’t be fully digitized.

That’s where serendipity-as-a-service apps come in. These platforms are all about creating real-life connections, minus the awkwardness of formal networking or the pressure of dating apps.

Here’s the basic playbook:

1. Take a personality quiz. Let the algorithm do its thing.

2. Sign up for an event. Usually something around a meal plus some activities.

3. Get matched with a group. Your social fate is now in the hands of the app.

Here are a few standout players in this space:

1. 222: A Gen Z favorite, combining meals with fun events like rooftop jazz or karaoke. Their app onboarding is top-notch—seriously, give it a try (just trust me!!)

   

2. Timeleft: Focused on Wednesday dinners. Why Wednesdays? Who knows, but it seems to work for them.

   

3. The Breakfast: Start your day by meeting someone new over breakfast.

   

These apps are catching on in a big way. For example, Timeleft grew from 0 to 1.5M users in just 11 months.

So why do they work?

For starters, they’re low-pressure. Think of them as social dining apps rather than networking or dating apps. Everyone has to eat—even if you don’t love the people you’re matched with, you still get a good meal out of it. No strings attached, no expectations.

Second, they’re effortless to use. You sign up for an event, and the app handles everything: matching the group, booking the restaurant, and even providing icebreakers. All you have to do is show up, eat, and enjoy.

That said, I wonder about their long-term retention. Most of these platforms charge a monthly membership fee, but how often do people need a regular dose of dining with strangers? I see these apps thriving among people who’ve recently moved to a new city and are eager to build connections.

Have you tried any serendipity-as-a-service apps? If so, I’d love to hear your thoughts!

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See you in two weeks,

Leo