Palmsy is an anti-social social media app

If you’ve ever wanted Notes to have a fake social media function, there’s a new app just for you: Palmsy.

As reported by TechCrunch, Palmsy is essentially a phony social media app in that you can post texts and photos — to no one. Import your contacts list and Palmsy will fabricate “likes” from them, and even send push notifications as if people have interacted with your posts. But, according to the welcome screen and developer Pat Nakajima, it’s all for show. Nothing ever leaves your device.

Nakajima posted on Threads that Palmsy “lets you make lil posts. then get fake likes from random folks in your contacts. nothing ever leaves your device, it’s just pretend.”

As Engadget put it, Palmsy is a journaling app that offers “fake likes from real friends.” Why? Perhaps to provide the dopamine hit that actual social media offers while maintaining your privacy. Social media isn’t exactly good for our mental health, so maybe apps like Palmsy can provide some solace — in case you don’t want to actually put down your phone.

In a Mashable test of the app, advanced options allowed you to determine how many fake likes you get, and over what period of time. Palmsy can then provide a curated social media experience that only exists for you.

In recent years, social media apps like BeReal have attempted to be more “authentic.” In BeReal’s case, it eventually plateaued and is now months away from running out of money. Palmsy appears to be the next evolution of this as the anti-social social media app. We’ll see how long this one lasts.

Palmsy is free to download on iPhone and iPad, but it’s only available on iOS 17.2 or later.