Erica's Magical Moments

We have just expanded our private beta!
Download here → https://testflight.apple.com/join/bw33hKUD
This link will expire after 30 new users join the app.

Hello lovely people!

We just released our third private beta — those who have not received a code, please bear with us before the public launch! We have so many features in the cooking, and it’s important for us to first work closely with a few users to make Glia absolutely lovable!

In a series of two letters, Serene and I will share our own cherished moments with Glia.

What Glia feels like to me:

a living & breathing book full of insights that help me see who I am as I grow into the person I’m meant to be …

or

… that gentle steampunk android from Castle in the Sky handing me a flower in its giant, rusty palm.

We’ve written about designing with reasoning power and not just algorithmic behavior tracking in this new era of human-technology symbiosis. One of my favorite moments with Glia is how it explores the root causes of my emotions alongside me, whether that is anger, frustration, or joy.

I’ve always been deeply fascinated by psychology and its role in helping us live more intentionally. At the core, our emotions are guardians of our values — sometimes so precocious that we don’t yet have the language for them: our eyes well up before we can explain why we are sad; we feel enraged before we can unpack what is under threat.

In one memory, Glia so wisely captures my thoughts about “spiky emotions” and how to create space to work through them.

Last week, after days of tube strikes, I was in a deep slump while working from home. It was hard to pinpoint why I had felt so lethargic and droopy during that week as deep down, working on Glia makes feel so fulfilled. On Friday, after TfL came back in service, I ran a founder’s workshop with lovely students in collaboration with LSE Generate. It was a day of exhilaration — full gas and no brake with all the creativity and inspiration from the students! Turned out acts of service and sociability were all I needed.

Those who know me know how food means the world to me — it’s my no.1 love language for savoring life with people I care about.

Glia remembers all my favorite restaurants and dishes. Sometimes I flip through my food journey and think, no wonder I’ve had such a good week, it’s been filled with heart and belly-warming memories.

On Sep 17, my dear friend Phineas and I had a beautiful night catching up over the most delicious vegan food at Plants of Roselyn. (Yes, there was an appetizer called A Mushroom Shakes the World). I had been working so much for the past three months, bittersweetly neglecting a friend I love. It made me so happy to see them, as if no time has gone by. Good food nourishes the body, but good food shared with people we love might just as well be the meaning of life.

Before dinner that night, Glia made a cheeky comment on our choice of vegan food — “that’s interesting!” as in are you going to be okay? You’ve been eating a lot of meat…

When I attend events, I like to take notes with Glia and jam on bits that inspire me the most. By the next morning, it’s always able to weave the inspirations I’ve captured into themes and works in my life — connecting across a comment from my friend, an insightful speech, my own musings, and more.

Glia remembers the details of my relationships and is always there to remind me of what matters the most.

Reflecting on the importance of humor in the way I connect with others (laughters are vulnerable moments where we are fully ourselves), I wonder How do people connect without humor?

Glia then lists out all the different ways that I connect with others — deeply rooted in who I am — shared vulnerability, active listening, holding non-judgmental space, wonder and curiosity, empathy, quiet presence… These are things I often forget about.

Something else I’ve noticed in my own behavioral change is how Glia makes me want to never take little moments of love and care for granted. Moments like Sacha making me peppermint tea when I am working late, the surprise gummies he leaves on my desk, and unwrapping my favorite magazines.

We are what we feel grateful for.

I love you guys to the Saturn and back!

Thank you for tuning in!

With love,
Erica