Kimono

Project Overview

The first version of Kimono shipped fast, and people were leaving before they saw what it could do. Most people never got past sign-up, which asked for a phone number and account access without explaining why. Those who did found contacts hard to read and settings scattered across the app. Kimono is a privacy-first product, and people needed to feel safe sharing their network with it. The first version gave them no reason to, and that was the problem we set out to solve.

Our Role

Here is what we designed:

• Sign-up with trust signals at every step. It explains what to expect, verifies the phone, sets up a passkey for signing in, and connects a first data source.
• A checklist that turns connecting data sources into visible progress
• A cold start flow that helps returning users pick up where they left off
• Connections and contacts pages that are easier to read and filter
• A chat that brings up the details about a person worth acting on
• A reorganized settings area where people manage their data sources, account, scheduled prompts, Kimono IDs, memories, and security, connect other AI tools through MCP, and see what's new

Impact & Results

Kimono is now clear about what people share and why. Every permission is explained before it's requested, and every insight shows its source. Since the redesign, people know what they are sharing before they share it, more of them finish signing up, and they reach their own contacts in under two minutes.