An app designed to help Christians overcome addiction to pornography has been acquired by Rocapine, a company that describes itself as a “wellness venture studio”.
The app, Unchaind has received over half a million downloads in less than a year. Rocapine acquired the app after raising $13 million in early funding from investors.
Unchaind includes a number of features, such as accountability groups, streak tracking, daily check-ins, content blocking and an AI Bible companion. The companion is designed to provide faith-based guidance when the user is feeling tempted.
A survey of over 1,000 Unchaind users in Britain found that nearly all were young men (95 per cent male and 90 per cent under 25). Of these the vast majority (85 per cent) said their first encounter with pornography came before they were adults, with more than half (51 per cent) saying they first encountered pornography before the age of 13.
The survey also found that half of the app’s users viewed pornography or explicit content every day and 42 per cent said they found sexual arousal without pornography challenging.
The intention behind the app is not simply to try and block overly sexual content, but to hold users accountable and provide them with something more wholesome, notably faith and community.
In short, the void they are trying to fill with porn, must be filled with something else.
One user of the app, James, said, “This app changed my life. The AI Bible companion is like having a pastor available 24/7. I've been free for 6 months now and my relationship with God has never been stronger.”
Another, Marcus, said, “I struggled for years and tried everything. Unchaind addressed the spiritual root of my struggle. The daily devotionals hit different when they're personalized.”
Stanislas Marchand, CEO and co-founder of Rocapine, said of the group’s acquisition of Unchaind, “Millions of people want to change behaviours that leave them feeling trapped, but very few digital products genuinely help them do it."
