Save The Rave

Inspiration

The concept for our app emerged from a desire to ensure that social gatherings are not only enjoyable but also safe and inclusive spaces. Our app is built on three core pillars: inviting socially proofed individuals, restricting access to only those invited, and offering a secure way home.

The journey to this idea started with recognizing the gaps in the current party scene. Too often, gatherings intended for fun and connection are marred by the presence of uninvited guests or acquaintances who can disrupt the atmosphere. Our solution was to establish a network where attendees are socially vetted, ensuring a trusted community. By implementing a socially proofed invitation system, we create a setting where both hosts and guests feel secure and at ease, knowing that everyone present has been vouched for by trusted connections.

What it does

The app transforms the party experience by prioritizing safety at every step. It starts with our social proof network, allowing hosts to invite only trusted, socially vetted guests, ensuring that everyone at the event is part of a secure community. Once invitations are sent, guests receive a unique QR code ticket via the app. This QR code serves as their entry pass, scanned upon arrival to manage access efficiently and prevent uninvited attendees from entering.

At the end of the night, our BringBackBuddy system steps in to ensure everyone gets home safely. This feature coordinates groups of guests who are headed in the same direction, promoting a buddy system for their journey home. By pooling together guests for shared transportation, the app not only ensures safety but also fosters a sense of community and responsibility among attendees.

How we built it

Building an app in just 24 hours requires an efficient technology stack. Utilizing Django and Swift is an excellent approach, combining the powerful capabilities of Django for the backend with the seamless user experience potential of Swift for the frontend on iOS devices.

Challenges we ran into

Although we had some foundational knowledge of iOS development, the journey of building our app proved to be unexpectedly challenging and distinctly different from our web development projects. Our prior experience gave us a basic understanding of Swift and Xcode, but we quickly realized that the complexities of iOS development went far beyond what we anticipated. The intricacies of managing UI layouts, adhering to Apple's design guidelines, and navigating Swift's strict type safety and memory management were formidable compared to the relative flexibility of web applications. These challenges necessitated a deeper dive into iOS-specific frameworks and best practices. This experience, while more demanding than expected, ultimately enriched our skills and understanding of mobile app development.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

Despite encountering numerous challenges and the pressures of tight deadlines, our team remained steadfast and committed to our vision of creating a useful app that enhances safety and security at social gatherings. Having not given up despite 24 hour of hard work (and no sleep) and instead having grown together as a team is something we are very proud of.