Chris Dykes of Baton Rouge wanted to create a smartphone app that harnesses the power of social media to change the political culture in the United States.
But Dykes, the former chief information officer of the state Department of Health and Hospitals, soon realized that solving “politics by trying to solve politics” was futile—like pushing a mountain, hoping it would move. So he shifted his focus to ideas, and the notion of how one idea can change the world and dozens of smaller ideas can change one part of a city.
Freebird was born.
The free app allows users to anonymously post their ideas for people in a certain geographic area to view and vote on by swiping left or right—similar to the Tinder dating app, but for ideas. It became available on the Apple operating system in late October and could be available on the Android system by March.
“It’s a completely different social media app than anything out there,” Dykes says. “What we created is essentially a democracy in a box.”
The app has about 200 users right now, mostly in the Baton Rouge area, but Dykes’ hopes for the app are not modest. He believes the app could have global appeal.
“The goal is for everybody to be using it for ideas,” Dykes says. “You’ve got an idea, you think Freebird.”
Dykes says he and his team are currently working on a promotional video for the app that they’ll upload to YouTube, as well as other marketing efforts, in a push to expand the app’s user reach.
Among the ideas for Baton Rouge that popped up on a quick check of the app this morning are: “There should be a small coffee shop/café with an outdoor seating focus along the LSU lakes … as part of the major improvement efforts,” and “Kip Holden makes 150k. The next mayor should make 200k as we need to pay for top talent.”
People can comment on the ideas under anonymous user names and spread the ideas by sharing them through Facebook and Twitter, as well as email, Dykes says.
“This app believes in the wisdom of crowds, that the many are actually smarter than the few when given the right tools,” Dykes says.
While anonymity is one of the hallmarks of Freebird, there are options for businesses and public officials to create accounts and post ideas, Dykes says.
The app’s creator suggests the technology might also be useful for a group like the Capital Region Industry for Sustainable Infrastructure Solutions, or CRISIS, which is pushing elected officials to find solutions to Baton Rouge’s traffic woes. Dykes says CRISIS could create a page, post their ideas to it and elicit responses.
—Ryan Broussard
