Take your attention back. Together.
For couples, friends and whole families. Block what keeps you from being present, and do it together.
A first phone that only calls and texts, in development now. Watch the walkthrough or join the pilot.
Block apps with a partner.
An iPhone and an Android phone running the same setup, so you can see what each person sees when one of them asks and the other answers.
Why it works
What makes it stick is another person.
Anchor is not about locking yourself down harder. It takes something you have been meaning to sort out on your own and makes it a thing you and someone you trust do together.
Asking out loud
One small moment of asking another person is enough to change what you do next. No streaks to break, no shame, just a quick question.
Someone you chose
You pick who you partner with, and you can change your mind any time. They are on your side because you put them there.
It gets easier
Reaching for the app you blocked stops being automatic sooner than you would think. The habit you build with someone tends to be the one that lasts.
Who's in it with you
Accountability runs both ways.
Anchor is the same idea at every age, and it works best when nobody is doing it alone. Kids learn their phone habits by watching yours. A simpler phone lands very differently when the grown-ups' phones are anchored too.
How it works
Four steps, then it stays out of your way.
Pair with your person
Share a code with your partner, a parent, or a friend. One code is enough to link you both, and you can be paired with more than one person.
Set it up once
Anchor walks you through a few phone permissions so it can actually block, then you pick the apps that pull you in. They stay blocked everywhere, not just on the home screen.
Ask when you need it
Open something blocked and you can send a request. They get a notification, they approve or deny it, and it unlocks for as long as they said. Not a second longer.
They know it is still on
Your people see that your blocking is set up and holding, plus every request you send. If Anchor gets switched off or goes quiet, they are told. No self-reporting, just partnership and accountability.
Two apps, one idea
Built for every age in the house.
Anchor
The phone you stop fighting with.
- Real blocking for everything else
- Your partner approves the unlock requests
- They see that your blocking is on and holding, not what you use
- Going solo? Lock changes behind a PIN you store far away
Live on Android and iPhone. Partners can be on different platforms.
Anchor Kids
A first phone that is just for connection.
- Only the contacts you approve
- No open internet and no app store
- Calls and texts you can see from a parent dashboard
- SOS and 911 always one tap away
- Runs on an Android phone you already have in a drawer
Not released yet. We are living on it with our own kids first, which is the only test that really counts.
See it from both phones.
A first phone that only calls and texts. What your kid sees, and what you set up from your own phone. Still in development, and the pilot is open.
Pricing
Free while we build it.
Anchor is in early access, so it costs nothing today. When we do start charging, this is what it will be.
Household
$9.99 a month
- Two adults, each with their own Anchor
- Every kid phone in the house, once Anchor Kids ships
- One bill for everyone under your roof
One person
$4.99 a month
- Anchor for one person, on iPhone or Android
- Pair with anyone, wherever they live
- Move to Household whenever you want
Anchor works in pairs, and both of you are doing the same thing: blocking apps and answering each other. Two friends in different homes pay $4.99 each. A couple pays $9.99 and the kids come with it.
Our approach
Built on trust, not control.
Anchor only works if you would happily hand it to someone you trust. That rules a few things out on purpose.
Deleting Anchor always works
Uninstall is never blocked. It stays an emergency exit, always. Your partner simply gets told, which is the entire point.
No blocker is unbreakable
Anyone determined enough can get around any of them, and we would rather say so than pretend otherwise.
Status, not surveillance
Your partner sees that your protection is on and the requests you choose to send. They do not see which apps you use, for how long, or what you browse.
See it first
Watch the whole setup, start to finish.
Both phones, side by side, from first launch to your partner approving a request.