Siempre Collective

Photo of the Siempre team. Two team members are holding the third. The third looks happy. There is a painting in the background.

We're the Siempre Collective.

For over a year, we developed systems that helped us support fulfilling long-term relationships with our closest friends, families, and communities, no matter where they were.

Our last experiment, Online Town, is now being continued by the team at Gather.

We've also open-sourced all our work so that the future of these ideas isn't limited by our ability or circumstances. We hope you'll put them to good use.

Always with love,
Cyrus, Phillip and Kumail

Online Town

June 20, 2019 + March-April 2020

A new interface for gathering online.

Like Zoom and Pokemon combined. Walk in and out of different conversations, just like you would in real life.

See the code

Screenshot from Online Town, showing a 2D map with avatars and corresponding webcam feeds for the users below the map. Colored borders around the videos and avatars helps users know who they're interacting with.

Experiments in Virtual Reality

January 17 - March 5, 2020

Explorations in living, working and socializing with VR + using VR as a medium for understanding presence in general

See the code

Screenshot shows a digital reconstruction of our physical office space inside virtual reality. It shows the entire Siempre team at their respective desks but as 3D avatars that we designed to look like our physical selves. Our monitors are also represented in VR and the screenshot shows that they are visible to all team members. There is also a virtual whiteboard that has our notes from real life.

Parallel Video / "The Tablet"

March 18, 2019 - April 5, 2020

Used daily by our friends and family, this is our longest-running experiment in remote co-living.

It makes it really easy for you to see all of the people you love and to help them see you without coordination and without those people having to see each other either.

Read More

See the code

Wrist Band

April 21, 2019 - Aug 23, 2019

Two-way audio with the people closest to you. Occasionally more accessible than any other device.

See the code

Photo depicts a prototype of an electronic wrist band in the hand of a Siempre team member. There are exposed wires, buttons, lights and other components. The band is white, curved and appears to be 3D-printed.

Instant Talk

July 2019

An app that lets you know who is free based on their location, headphone usage and manual input. You tap on a friend's name and it'll let audio pass through immediately, as if it was a pre-accepted call.

See the code

Screenshot of an iOS interface indicating the names of a few users who are free to talk

VR-controlled Robot Surrogate

October 2019

Our neighbors told us they cared about Halloween a lot.

This is what we built to surprise them.

See the code

Photo of robotic humanoid sitting in chair

Head-Synchronized Viewports

August 2019

What if video calls actually felt like portals?

Move your head around and you'd see different parts of the room on the other side!

Normal calls only give you a fixed reference frame.

See the code

Permiso

June-July 2019

An iOS app to lower the friction, awkwardness and cost of asking your friends to help you.

See the code

Screenshot of an iOS app with the prompt 'Cyrus needs a doggo!' with photos of dogs to choose from or a select from camera roll and take picture button

Screenshot of an iOS app with the prompt 'Cyrus is thinking of you :)' followed by options to select friendly stickers, send them a selfie or call them

Portals between Restaurants

Summer 2019

What if you could grab dinner with your friends no matter where they were?

Just go to your nearest portal-enabled restaurant!

See the code

Photo of food at restaurant with our video tablet in front

Screen capture of a person and their video recreated in Virtual Reality

Letter Chat

August 2019

A real-time chat client where the letters stream out of sight as you type them.

Designed to help you be in the moment.

See the code

Holographic Videochat

January 2019

This was our first project together. It combines a 3D camera with a 3D display to make it feel like you're talking to a live hologram of your friend!

Photo of a holographic display with Phillip, Cyrus and Kumail in it

Questions? Comments?

We'd love to hear from you.

team@siemprecollective.com