Sifter Public Beta Is Now Open — Join the First Wave of Testers

A couple months ago we announced Sifter — our proximity chat app built to help people meet the strangers around them without handing over phone numbers or socials. Today, we are opening the doors.

Sifter is now available for public beta testing on iOS. Anyone can download it, try it, and help us shape the final 1.0 release. This is the version we have been quietly building for months, and we are ready for real people to get their hands on it.

What You Can Do Right Now

Even at this stage, Sifter already does the core things we promised in the announcement:

• See who is nearby, filtered by distance and interests
• Start private conversations without exchanging contact info
• Control exactly when and where you are visible to others
• Set up your profile with as much or as little information as you want
• Report and block anyone who breaks the rules — safety is a first-class feature

This Is a Beta — Here Is What That Means

We are being upfront with you. Beta means the app is stable enough to use daily, but it is not finished. Some things are still rough, some features we plan to add are not in yet, and we will absolutely find bugs you report back to us. That is the whole point of this phase.

What we are asking from beta testers is pretty simple: use it, tell us what works, tell us what does not, and flag anything that feels broken or off. In exchange, you get early access to something new and a real say in how the final product turns out.

Where It Works Best Right Now

Proximity apps have a chicken-and-egg problem — they work better with more people around. During beta, Sifter will feel best in places where people are already gathered: conferences, meetups, large events, busy coffee shops, university campuses, and coworking spaces.

If you are in Las Vegas or planning to attend any major event, open the app and see who else is using it. We are actively focused on seeding the early user base in high-density locations so the network effect builds naturally.

How to Give Feedback

Every piece of feedback shapes what we build next. You can reach us a few ways:

• In-app feedback — tap the feedback button from settings
• Email us directly from the app with a single tap
• Visit [sifter.cc](https://sifter.cc) for updates and contact info
• Report bugs through TestFlight if you are on that flow

What Is Coming Next

Based on early internal testing, our roadmap to 1.0 focuses on three things: tighter matching based on interest tags, richer profiles for users who want them, and deeper privacy controls for users who want to stay more anonymous. We will ship updates frequently based on what beta testers tell us matters most.

We are thrilled to finally have Sifter out in the world. If you download it, thank you — genuinely. You are helping us build something we believe will make real-world connection easier for a lot of people.