It’s 2020 and we’re bombarded with more information than ever before. Now a University of Guelph graduate has created an app that helps people understand how their mood is affected by this throughout the day.
“We’re spending a lot more time on our computer and it’s important to understand how the apps that we use, the social media that we’re consuming — it’s important to be aware of whether this is adding to our well being or harming our well being,” said founder of the mood tracking app and University of Guelph alumnus Dan Seider.
Seider recently launched Misu, a free mood tracking macOS desktop app that takes photos of users while they use a computer so their emotions can be analyzed using artificial intelligence technology. The AI software observes micro-changes in facial expressions of users such as subtle eye squinting, a furrowed brow or the curve of a smile. Based on the analyses, Misu can tell users which websites cause them anxiety and which ones make them happy.
Seider said the goal for the company is to uplift people and using AI to track their mood is a way to achieve that goal.
“If we’re informed that we’re actually spending a lot of time on some social platform that is not helping our wellness, then we’re empowered to be more mindful and change our behaviour,” said Seider.
“All photos are deleted instantly. Quicker than a blink of an eye because trust and privacy is one of our top value,” said Seider.
And for the Toronto native who now lives in the San Francisco bay area, the cause is personal.
Seider felt a need for a mood-tracking app when he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder while pursuing his undergraduate degree at U of G in 2012.
“My psychiatrist and my therapist all recommended that I track my mood because it helps build emotional awareness so I could be more aware of how I feel,” said Seider.
He said by tracking his mood through a comprehensive record of his emotions, he would be able to change and regulate his behaviour so he can be happier, less anxious and less depressed.
“I was tracking my mood for years and finally found a way to automatically track my mood because there seems to be a market for people who will only track their mood if it can be done automatically,” said Seider.
And so he taught himself how to code and launched Misu on the Apple Store.
On average the app tracks a person’s mood 600 times a day. He said with Misu, most people who are doubtful of the efficacy of their psychiatric drugs can visually see a record of how their behaviour and moods have shifted.
“It’s actually really hard to remember our emotions in the past, so having a history can be very empowering and can actually empower the person to go back on their meds, watch their moods to a levelled state and they can decide to stay back on them,” said Seider.
“I want to uplift people so they can be more aware of their feelings and understand how what they’re doing impacts their mood, how using Netflix for 30 minutes impacts their mood compared to going for a yoga or mediation session.”
Seider said the name of the app comes from the dessert tiramisu where coffee is sprinkled on top.
“Tiramisu is intended as a pick me up. It gives an uplift of energy and in our DNA of a company, it is to help people uplift their mood,” said Seider.
