As is the US Surgeon General calling for a warning label on social networking sites, similar to those found in tobacco products, a startup is launching a set of new tools that put the power to fight app addiction in the hands of users. Designed for iOS, Roots offers an improvement over traditional screen time apps by measuring not only time spent on devices, but also the quality of that time spent in different apps with its ‘digital dopamine’ tracker. Other features let users lock themselves out of the most addictive apps and add reminders to stop obsessively scrolling through algorithmic social feeds, among other things.
Co-founded by an entrepreneur Clint Jarvisthe idea for Roots came from his own experiences reaching a point of burnout in the startup world.
Initially, he tried to create a more balanced routine for himself, making time for things like meditation and getting outside, which later led him to start working on a nature-based mindfulness app. However, while participating in the entrepreneur-in-residence program at Wildwood Ventures, the app’s focus shifted to address the more immediate problem of the unhealthy way people interact with their devices.
“If you just think about the mission of the product, it’s to help people find a better balance with technology,” Jarvis said. “We live in a very digital world… our phones are incredible tools. But they are also highly addictive,” he says. “We need to think of the phone more like a relationship. … How do we set boundaries?”
Roots is designed to help people better understand what kinds of apps are worth spending time on and which aren’t.
“Ten minutes on your Kindle is not the same as 10 minutes on Twitter [now called X]Jarvis noted. “Digital dopamine gives you a way to actually quantify the impact of what you’re doing on your phone.”
This “digital dopamine” is a reference to the brain chemical also known as the “feel good” hormone that can was triggered through the use of social media and other addictive applications.
With Roots, you can set better intentions like how much time you want to spend scrolling and when you want this behavior to be blocked. The built-in digital dopamine detector measures the quality of your screen time in different apps and turns it into useful information that helps you make decisions about your technology use.
The app has a handful of tools to break the cycle of scrolling, including standard things like scheduling downtime and app limits by specific apps or categories. The app integrates with Apple’s Screen Time API to help configure some of these settings.
However, it also goes a step further with things like “Monk Mode” that lets you get serious about stopping your scroll, offering the ability to set limits and blocks that even you can’t bypass. You can’t even unroot, change your phone’s date and time, or use other workarounds to bypass this particular feature. In beta testing, users loved this feature as it finally allowed them to set a hard limit on their most addictive apps.
Roots also offers a “balance score” that quantifies phone usage in a personalized way to help you see where and how you can improve. Over time, Roots may add some sort of leaderboard that allows users to see how they compare to others.
Another feature can appear as a reminder to stop scrolling, which you can customize with personalized suggestions for other activities like reading a book, spending time with family, going for a walk, and more.
The freemium app generates revenue through in-app subscriptions of $9.99 per month or $59.99 per year. Paid plans offer more advanced features such as Monk Mode and digital dopamine reporting, among others.
While using Roots, you can build streaks while staying under screen time limits, which allows you to earn rewards like cheat days. Premium subscribers who practice good habits will also receive a physical scroll stopper, which introduces a “speed bump” that you can place on your phone — similar to something like a Livestrong bracelet or band. The scroll stopper makes you rethink scrolling apps when you pick up your phone.
In beta tests, Roots helped the average user reduce their screen time by 2 hours a day, Jarvis said.
Although Roots was started as a solo project by Jarvis, now CEO, the app today is co-founded by others, including the Head of Design Pontus Wellgraf, who has previously worked on design projects for MasterClass, Netflix, Microsoft, Huawei, Samsung and Ford. Head of User Experience Vikram Chauhanwho founded Quiet Parks International, a non-profit organization focused on reducing noise pollution and saving quiet spaces in nature. and Head of Development Marcin Czech.
The startup is backed by $550,000 in pre-seed funding from Wildwood Ventures and other angel investors in the Atlanta area.
