Solemates

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Inspiration

We were inspired by a deep, unanswered question: What if true love is just a foot away? Dating apps are all the same: swipe, ghost, repeat. But what if we stopped looking into each other’s eyes… and started looking at each other’s feet? Thus, Solemates was born, the world’s first AI-powered dating app that matches people based on foot shape, symmetry, and sole-ful vibes. Also, Quentin Tarantino.

What it does

Solemates helps you find your sole mate by:

Analyzing your feet (yes, feet) using computer vision and a CNN
Generating a creepy compatibility score
Matching you with foot-similar users
Forcing you to flirt using only foot puns
Rejecting messages that don’t toe the line (pun intended) It’s Tinder meets Dr. Scholl’s. But worse. On purpose.

How we built it

Image Input: We used Gradio to collect three foot images per user. Feature Extraction: A custom-built CNN in TensorFlow processes each image and extracts a 64-dimension feature embedding. Simulated Biometrics: We simulate traditional foot metrics like arch length, symmetry score, and toe lengths using image properties and randomness to avoid medical complexity. Matching Logic: We use cosine similarity on embeddings, combined with heuristic scores from simulated metrics, to compute compatibility. Pun Enforcement: An NLP rule-based system checks all chat messages for foot-related puns. Messages without pun density ≥ 3/10 are rejected. Database: SQLite stores users, matches, foot profiles, and messages. Frontend: Built with Gradio, styled to match the “surveillance horror” aesthetic. Backend: FastAPI handles image processing and business logic.

Challenges we ran into

Gradio + FastAPI Integration: Running both in Colab with database access and session control required managing threading and state carefully. Mocking Real Biometrics: We needed the system to “feel” scientific without requiring actual medical image processing balancing realism and absurdity.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We built a pun gatekeeper that filters messages adding humor and friction to an otherwise typical chat experience.

What we learned

Vercel is an incredible tool for vibe coding and bringing absurb ideas into fruition. Creativity thrives under constraints- this parody idea stretched our technical muscles more than real apps

What's next for Solemates

We've only just dipped our toes in. We thought about partnering with wearables using sensor tech to detect pheromone compatible foot scent profiles- but this needs further thought and engineering so looking forward to that!