TheDaily.

Inspiration

We were inspired by the shift from participatory social media in 2016 to today’s passive scrolling culture. Our user interviews revealed that people miss shared trends and challenges that encouraged everyone to contribute. Moments like viral challenges created collective participation and lowered the pressure to post. We wanted to recreate that feeling while addressing modern issues like perfectionism and performance anxiety.

What it does

TheDaily introduces a shared creative prompt once per day. Users respond using photo, video, text, or drawing, and must post before viewing others’ responses. The prompts remove blank canvas anxiety, encourage spontaneous sharing, and create a shared experience. Responses are saved in a prompt-based archive, allowing users to revisit past moments and track how their responses evolve over time.

How we built it

We began with user research to identify pain points around perfectionism and declining participation. From there, we developed low-fidelity wireframes to explore prompt delivery and response flows. After iterating on interaction design, we created a high-fidelity prototype in Framer, focusing on a clean interface, shared prompt experience, and archive navigation.

Challenges we ran into

One challenge was balancing structure and flexibility. We wanted prompts to guide users without feeling restrictive. Another challenge was differentiating TheDaily from existing platforms like BeReal while still integrating naturally into familiar behaviours. We also had to prioritize which features to include within the limited time frame.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We successfully translated user research into a clear, cohesive solution. We created a prototype that demonstrates participation-before-consumption, shared prompts, and an evolving archive. We’re also proud that the concept directly addresses real user pain points and aligns with the theme of restoring spontaneous participation.

What we learned

We learned that perfectionism is a major barrier to participation, and that users don’t necessarily need more content—they need clearer reasons to share. We also learned that shared experiences drive engagement more than individual posting features. Structured creativity can lower pressure and encourage authentic expression.

What's next for TheDaily.

Next, we would test prompt effectiveness with real users and refine prompt categories. We would explore collaborative responses, allowing users to build on each other’s posts. We would also expand the archive with recap features and memory resurfacing. Long term, we would explore small-group sharing to strengthen authentic connections.

Built With

• figma
• framer