The purpose of this exercise was twofold: to create a positive user experience as a practical exercise, and to create an Atypical App outside the norm as a creative exercise. The Irony of an app that Creates Personas isn't lost on me.
This should go without saying that this is a pretty bizarre concept and should be judged ONLY on the merits of its design and development, and nothing else. Quirky and strange projects pique my interest, and it’s the only proven means of forcing me to practice my craft in my free time.
With that being said, this is PERSONOS, the app made for compulsive liars.
CLIENT: Independent Project
ROLE: UX, Product Designer
TEAM: Solo Contributor
TIMELINE: Two Weeks
The Problem
Many people crave attention or a sense of significance, often curating false personas online through filters and selective content. While digital deception is easy to detect, real-world lies are harder to unravel. What if there were a way to control how we present these identities in person?
Pain Points
- Naturally, Conflicting Stories Arise Over Time
- Lies Constructed in the Moment are Hard to Maintain Long-term
In college, a professor introduced the concept of “antisocial media”: platforms that foster limited, unconventional interactions rather than mass engagement. With today’s fragmented and volatile digital landscape, the idea now feels surprisingly relevant.
“Digital Campfires”
A Harvard study notes declining social media use among Millennials and Gen Z, with a shift toward “Digital Campfires”—small, interest-based communities. In this app’s context, lying across disconnected groups could reduce the risk of exposure, offering a form of controlled compartmentalization.
“If social media can feel like a crowded airport terminal where everyone is allowed, but no one feels particularly excited to be there, digital campfires offer a more intimate oasis where smaller groups of people are excited to gather around shared interests.”
— Sarah Wilson, "The Era of Antisocial Media"
RUMBLR App
Rumblr is a joke concept for a Tinder-like app where you set up unsanctioned street fights instead of setting up dates. It presents an interesting idea that goes against what you’d expect from any social app, and it enables real-world behavior with negative results.
Design Summary
The PERSON OS app is meant to generate false identities as a framework as quickly as possible within active social situations. The interface was made to be as simple to navigate as possible and as quick to set up.
EASY SETUP
Once launched into the app, users will have the barest of choices to suit their needs to facilitate the creation of their personas, starting with choosing their Gender, to their age group.
GENERATED PERSONAS
Once the gender and age range is established, users will be able to swipe through a list of potential Personas to use to form the basis of their fabricated identity.
Expanded Info
Each fabricated persona will have a framework backstory to help sell the crafted identity and keep the scope of any potential falsehood as small and concise as possible.
