# :material-history: Project History

!!! info "What is this?"
    The decade-long journey from a TNO research project to ONLIFE—and how it birthed the Smartup model itself. This is our collective memory of how we got here.

## The Evolution: From Apps to Emergency Infrastructure

### Phase 1: The Origin - Transient Apps (2016-2017)

Our story begins with a research collaboration between **TNO** (Dutch research organization) and **RS New Media Concepts**. The problem: smartphone users drowning in app choices. The solution: **"Transient Apps"**—lightweight applications that appear when needed, disappear when not.

**What we built:**<br>
- The **Context Engine**: An algorithm predicting user needs based on physical location<br>
- Automatic delivery of relevant web apps<br>
- Working prototype proving the concept<br>

**What stopped us:**<br>
Platform gatekeepers (Google, Apple) would never allow it. They were already building their own versions (Instant Apps, Progressive Web Apps). We hit a dead end.

!!! success "Phase 1 Outcome"
    Research validated but path blocked by platform control:<br>
    - Context-aware app delivery proven<br>
    - User need confirmed<br>
    - Technical feasibility demonstrated<br>
    - Platform dependency identified<br>
    
    [:material-file-document: Transient Apps Research Report](../assets/pdfs/Final Report_HTSM TKI Transient apps.pdf){ target=_blank .md-button }

### Phase 2: The First Pivot - "Onlive" Social Networks (2017-2019)

Rather than abandon the Context Engine, we pivoted. If we couldn't change how apps work, could we change how people connect?

**The ethical awakening:**<br>
As Facebook's scandals mounted, we faced a choice: build another data-harvesting social network or find a different path. We chose differently. Instead of connecting individuals online, we'd connect **groups of people in their immediate physical world**.

**"Onlive: the social network for the real world"**<br>
- Context Engine repurposed to identify relevant groups<br>
- Seven Dutch business partners provided feedback<br>
- UX and architecture developed<br>

**The revelation:**<br>
We weren't building an app. We were building an **Operating System for group interaction in the real world**.

!!! success "Phase 2 Outcome"
    Proof of Concept delivered:<br>
    - Android prototype functional<br>
    - Backend architecture designed<br>
    - UX patterns established<br>
    - Business validation complete<br>
    
    [:material-file-document: Onlive Research Report](../assets/pdfs/Onlive final report.pdf){ target=_blank .md-button }

### Phase 3: The Governance Pivot - Birth of the Smartup Model (2019-2020)

With research complete, the logical next step was forming a traditional startup. But was it the *right* step?

**The dilemma:**<br>
- Public-good technology<br>
- Complex social mission<br>
- Poor fit for VC model<br>

**The insight:**<br>
> "How we create is as important as what we create."

The organizational structure itself needed to embody our values: open, democratic, mission-driven.

**The Smartup Model emerges:**<br>
We began designing a new type of organization based on:<br>
- Collective ownership<br>
- Democratic governance<br>
- Scientific rigor<br>
- SDG alignment<br>

!!! success "Phase 3 Outcome"
    New organizational model conceptualized:<br>
    - Smartup governance structure defined<br>
    - Economic model designed<br>
    - Democratic principles embedded<br>
    - Blueprint for future documented<br>
    
    [:material-file-document: Smartup Zero Original Whitepaper](../assets/pdfs/Smartup Zero - a blueprint for disruption (book)_compressed.pdf){ target=_blank .md-button }

### Phase 4: The COVID Pivot & Academic Validation (2020-2022)

The pandemic provided an urgent, real-world test case. Could Onlive enable **"Digital Herd Immunity"** through group-tracing rather than individual contact-tracing?

**Academic collaboration with Erasmus Programme:**<br>
- Security challenges addressed<br>
- UX refined for crisis scenarios<br>
- Concept validation in pandemic context<br>
- Technical feasibility confirmed<br>

The world suddenly understood why decentralized, resilient communication matters.

!!! success "Phase 4 Outcome"
    Academic validation achieved:<br>
    - UX patterns for crisis communication<br>
    - Security model validated<br>
    - User research completed<br>
    - Emergency use cases confirmed<br>
    
    [:material-file-document: UX Research Report](../assets/pdfs/UX MVP 2022.pdf){ target=_blank .md-button }

### Phase 5: Technical Deep Dive - Mesh Networking (2023-2024)

To truly work without internet, we needed to go deeper into the networking layer.

**Partnership with HanzeHogeschool:**<br>
- Open-source mesh network implementation<br>
- Smartphone-native protocols<br>
- Beyond proof-of-concept to production-ready<br>
- Ad-hoc network formation without infrastructure<br>

We weren't just building an app anymore. We were building alternative internet infrastructure.

!!! success "Phase 5 Outcome"
    **Mesh protocol designed and tested:**<br>
    - 75+ node networks achieved<br>
    - Android implementation working<br>
    - Bluetooth/WiFi Direct integration<br>
    - Open source architecture defined<br>
    
    [:material-file-document: Mesh Network Protocol Design](../assets/pdfs/NLUUG - Smartup Zero - Hanze Copy .pptx.pdf){ target=_blank .md-button }

### Phase 6: The Final Pivot - ONLIFE Emergency Network (2025-Present)

Ten years of pivots, research, and refinement crystallized into a clear mission.

**From ONLIVE to ONLIFE:**<br>
Not just "online live"—but a network for LIFE itself. When everything else fails, ONLIFE remains.

**The focus sharpens:**<br>
- Emergency communication for citizens<br>
- Works without internet or telecoms<br>
- Mesh network using existing smartphones<br>
- European civil resilience infrastructure<br>

!!! success "Phase 6 Outcome"
    **The experiment begins:**<br>
    - Smartup Zero launched<br>
    - Community forming<br>
    - Development starting<br>
    - Everything transparent<br>
    
    **As an owner, you get access to all code, documentation, and decisions in real-time.**

!!! quote "Why the Name Change"
    "ONLIVE was about being online in live settings. ONLIFE is about staying connected when life itself is at stake. It's not just a network—it's a lifeline."

## The Dual Innovation

What makes our history unique is that we didn't just develop technology—we developed a new way to develop technology:

1. **ONLIFE**: The emergency communication protocol
2. **Smartup Model**: The organizational form to build it

Both innovations emerged from the same insight: existing systems—technical and organizational—aren't fit for planetary challenges.

!!! success "From Research to Reality"
    - 10 years of research<br>
    - Multiple pivots based on ethical considerations<br>
    - Academic validation<br>
    - Technical proof of concept<br>
    - Organizational innovation<br>
    - **Now**: Building it together as Smartup Zero<br>

## Key Partners Along the Journey

- **TNO**: Original research partner (2016-2017)
- **RS New Media Concepts**: Initial development
- **Seven Dutch businesses**: Early feedback partners
- **Erasmus Programme**: COVID-era validation
- **HanzeHogeschool**: Mesh networking research
- **You**: The next chapter begins with collective ownership

---

[:material-arrow-right-bold: Read the Current Mission](../smartup-zero/onlife.md){ .md-button .md-button--primary }

--8<-- "_snippets/join-cta.md"
