The Coordination Problem
The Coordination Problem
San Francisco has more AI meetups, hackathons, and community events than any other city. The tools exist. The people exist. The intention exists.
And the dominant experience is still: show up alone, recognize no one, have one good conversation, leave, never follow up.
The problem isn't technical. It's structural. We don't have good infrastructure for turning one-time interactions into durable relationships.
The Coordination Problem puts builders and domain experts in the same room to fix that, not just diagnose it, but build something that makes a dent.
The challenge
Spend two hours in small teams answering one question: what would it take to help people form and sustain real relationships in person?
A core insight from community design: the best communities lead with who they're gathering, not just the topic. We want you thinking about the people your solution serves and the kind of connection it enables.
You might tackle:
Commitment — everyone RSVPs, nobody shows up
Discovery — how do you find the right 20 people for a room?
Follow-through — you met someone great. Now what?
Durability — how does a first meeting become a real relationship?
Something nobody's thought of yet
We're looking for tools, systems, and experiences designed for repeat interaction, not just a great single night out.
Judges
Tim Wagner — Founder & CEO of Sevenn. Building an AI social app for IRL connections.
Colton Heward-Mills — Co-Founder of Build IRL. Building on the science of what makes in-person communities last.
Adele Bloch — Founder & Community Builder (designing experiences to meet IRL, Host of 100+ weekly walks & Dining with Strangers).
They'll evaluate on four dimensions: connection depth, in-person focus, novelty, and feasibility.
How it works
Teams are shuffled. Bring a team or build with people you just met.
~2 hours to build
4-minute demos + judging
All projects open-sourced
Sponsored by Sevenn
Food and drinks provided by Sevenn, (sevenn.co) get together easier and do the things you love more.
About Mox
Mox (moxsf.com) is a coworking space for people who want to make the world safe and delightful.
About Rally SF
Rally (rallysf.com) is an AI builder community in SF. We run events every week and think about this problem every day.
Accessibility note: Mox is on the 4th floor of 1680 Mission St. The building does not have an elevator. Please reach out if you have any questions or concerns about access.