Ampersand

Easy and secure way for couples to communicate and share the best moments of their life.

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Inspiration

Relationships are complicated - they always have been. Yet as we throw technology into the mix, relationships only seem to grow more complex. Couples are using online tools more and more frequently to stay connected as they Snapchat photos throughout the day, message each other with items to pick up from the grocery store, and email about financial matters. Unfortunately, these exchanges made online and through mobile apps are usually made with a certain expectation of privacy that does not actually exist.

Those who read the Terms & Conditions before using an app (very few of us) will find that many services explicitly deny any hope of privacy. In fact, every existing app that claims to provide a forum for private messaging still reserves the right to sell users’ data to third parties. The creators of Ampersand find this unacceptable.

That’s why we’ve built Ampersand, the first mobile app for truly private communication between couples. Worried about your secret pet names getting out to all your friends? Want to share some steamy photos? Need to share credit information? Or you simply want a protected way to interact with your significant other? No matter what your reason, Ampersand is the best way to protect your relationship from prying eyes.

What it does

Ampersand is the only messaging app to connect couples in a completely private way. After registering with the app through an individually automated SMS pin, users can easily import their significant other from their existing phonebook to create a private connection that only those two people can access. All messaging between the couple is entirely encrypted, and Ampersand does not reserve the right to sell users’ data to third parties, unlike other apps of its kind.

But Ampersand goes beyond simple messaging. With Ampersand, couples can securely share a wealth of private information, such as their location, flight status, and photos. They can even create to-do lists for one another within the app to completely eradicate those whose-turn-is-it-to-do-the-dishes conversations. Best of all, Ampersand’s users can rest assured that each of these interactions within the app will be completely encrypted.

How we built it

We are using a combination of Firebase and custom built ASP.NET WebAPI on the back-end, hosted on Azure. The iOS app is built with Objective-C.

Challenges we ran into

We've had minor issues with Twilio (accounts got suspended during development of the app).

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We have formed a team that hasn't previously worked together on a project, and have created a production-grade iOS application in under 8 hours.

What we learned

We've decided to use Firebase for the first time and had great success with it.

What's next for Ampersand

Publishing it on the App Store :)

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