A small but growing number of founders are betting on bringing people together offline
Founders Brynn Putnam and Tristan Walker, each successful from prior exits, are launching new ventures aimed at rebuilding in-person connection. Putnam’s Board makes a 24-inch touchscreen table designed for group play, while Walker’s Heirloom is acquiring and scaling fine-craft trade schools beginning with a San Francisco leatherworking program.
Why It Matters
Their moves reflect a broader interest in restoring face-to-face social interaction as a business opportunity, at a moment when public health and consumer surveys identify social connection and experiences as priorities. The trend could reshape how technology and physical spaces are used to foster communal activity.
Key Facts
- Founder: Brynn Putnam
- Putnam previous exit: Mirror sold to Lululemon for $500 million in cash in under three years
- Founder: Tristan Walker
- Walker previous exit: Walker & Company Brands sold to Procter & Gamble after five years; terms undisclosed (reportedly $20M–$40M)
- New company: Board — 24-inch touchscreen table that recognizes physical game pieces and gestures, designed for group play
Several high-profile founders are backing businesses that prioritize in-person gatherings after earlier successes in digital or product-led ventures. Brynn Putnam, who founded the connected-fitness company Mirror and sold it to Lululemon, has launched Board, a tabletop touchscreen intended to be used by groups seated around it rather than by a single user. The device recognizes physical pieces and gestures so players of different ages and abilities can share the same experience without a common learning curve. Tristan Walker, who previously sold Walker & Company Brands to Procter & Gamble, is building Heirloom to acquire and scale fine-craft trade schools. Heirloom’s initial target is a San Francisco leatherworking school started by Hermès’s first American artisan-ambassador. Walker has said the effort responds in part to concerns about AI eroding knowledge work and to a perceived breakdown in traditional master-apprentice transmission of craft. The two startups signal a broader shift in some entrepreneurial circles toward experiences and communal activities. A World Health Organization commission last year characterized loneliness as a global health challenge affecting about one in six people worldwide and linked to roughly 870,000 deaths annually. Consumer sentiment appears to back a focus on experiences: a Harris Poll sponsored by Marriott Bonvoy found two-thirds of Americans were prioritizing experiences like travel over material purchases and described retail as feeling generic. Other founders are also moving into the space of curated in-person connection. Andy Dunn’s Pie has evolved into an event-discovery and community platform anchored by recurring “Community Homes,” while Audrey Gelman has opened the Six Bells Countryside Inn in the Hudson Valley, hosting immersive events such as monthly murder-mystery dinners that encourage guests to mingle. For Putnam and Walker, the businesses represent deliberate bets that technology and physical spaces can be combined to restore forms of social connection they believe have weakened in recent decades.
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