According to PYMNTS.com, Twitter co-founder Biz Stone and Pinterest co-founder Evan Sharp have raised $29 million for their startup, West Co. Their first app, called Tangle, launched in November 2023 and is currently invite-only. The app is described as a “new kind of social network, designed for intentional living,” prompting users to share daily goals or “intentions.” Stone told the Financial Times in a January 4 report that the current version is an early test. This development comes as a report notes that generative AI now accounts for 57% of all online material, forcing platforms like Meta and Reddit to develop new moderation tools.
The Anti-Social Network?
So here’s the thing: the pitch for Tangle is fascinating because it’s essentially a critique of the very platforms its founders helped build. Evan Sharp talks about an “eight-year-long obsession” with understanding the damage done to the “human mind and heart” over the last 15 years. That’s a pretty stark admission from someone who helped design the endless, addictive scroll. Tangle’s core mechanic—a morning notification asking “What’s your intention for today?”—feels like a direct rebuttal to the doomscrolling and reactive outrage that defines so much of social media now. But is asking people to be intentionally positive… well, a viable social product? It’s a noble experiment, for sure. The question is whether people want a support group or a social network. They might be very different things.
Business Model and Timing
Now, the business model is the big, unanswered question. They’ve got $29 million in funding, which is serious money, but the article doesn’t hint at how Tangle or West Co plans to make more. Is it subscription-based? Will it eventually have ads? And if it has ads, doesn’t that inherently corrupt the “intentional living” vibe? The timing is also curious. They’re launching a small, intimate, invite-only app at the exact moment the rest of the industry is in a panic about AI-generated content flooding public feeds. Meta’s building Vibes for AI clips, Reddit’s cracking down on bots—everyone’s trying to manage scale and synthetic noise. Tangle seems to be betting that a retreat to small, human-scale, text-and-reflection-based interaction is what people crave. It’s a contrarian bet, and I think that’s why it’s interesting.
The Broader Context of Synthetic Content
And that last bit about AI is crucial context. When the report says 57% of all online material is now AI-generated, that’s a staggering stat. It completely reframes the problem. For a decade, the fight was about moderating human behavior. Now, platforms are building tools to separate human and synthetic activity entirely. In that world, a tightly-controlled, invite-only app focused on genuine human reflection starts to look less like a quirky side project and more like a potential sanctuary. If the public squares are overrun by bots and AI content farms, maybe there’s a market for a verified, human-only digital living room. Tangle might be accidentally positioning itself for that future, even if its founders are motivated by the past.
Will It Tangle or Untangle?
Basically, I’m skeptical but hopeful. Skeptical because changing human behavior online is incredibly hard, and “wellness” apps often struggle to maintain engagement. Hopeful because the people behind this have literally shaped the modern internet, and their public reckoning with that power is something we need more of. They’re not just another startup; they’re architects admitting the buildings they designed have some foundational cracks. Whether Tangle is the right patch is a huge unknown. But the fact that they’re trying to build something with a positive, defined purpose, rather than just chasing infinite growth and engagement, is a refreshing change of pace. We’ll see if anyone shows up.
