Welcome to SLJ Labs
By SLJ Labs Team
We're starting SLJ Labs because we enjoy building apps. Not to solve world problems or disrupt industries—just to make things we'd actually use.
How This Started
A few months ago, we started tinkering with an alarm clock app. No real plan, just curiosity about whether we could make something better than the iOS default.
As we built it, we noticed a pattern. Every alarm we set was for something involving other people. Meeting a friend. Catching a flight with family. Getting to work. Morning run with a group.
Even solo alarms connect to people—roommates you don't want to wake, a partner's schedule you're working around, a team expecting you online.
Alarms aren't really about time. They're prompts to do things with people. Yet every alarm app treats them like isolated events on a clock.
That felt like a gap worth filling.
What We're Building First
So Chime became our first project—an alarm clock that acknowledges the people around your schedule. The details will come later, but that's the core idea.
We're building it because we want to use it. If we love it, maybe others will too.
Why "Labs"?
The name matters. We're not building a company around one app. We like building things. We like learning. Chime is first, but it won't be the last.
SLJ Labs gives us space to explore different ideas without pressure. Bootstrapped and independent means:
- No rush. We'll only build what we'll actually use.
- No metrics to chase. We can take time to get things right.
- No compromises. We can say no to features we don't believe in.
Nothing will be forced. If we don't have something we want to build and use ourselves, we won't build it.
What's Next
Chime launches Q4 2025 on iOS. After that? We'll see what else needs building.
We'll share updates as we go. If you want to follow along, subscribe below.
Thanks for being here at the start.