VTC: Boundless app development Thu, Aug 6, 2026 Summary: A product and engineering alignment meeting on EEG processing, music delivery, pricing, and testing strategy. • EEG processing to run on phone; server "chaos engine" removed • Music via background progressive downloads, device-cached, lossless preferred • 10-minute free tier; 40-minute subscription tier; remove free-trial UX • Muse integration completed with simulator; devices to be distributed for testing • Check-in/checkout flow to be implemented and frozen for six months Action Items: * Jacob Fandel and Bob Dougherty will coordinate to integrate the C/C++ EEG processing module into the mobile app if on-device processing is confirmed. * Jacob Fandel will implement progressive background downloading and resumable caching for music playback so files can be downloaded behind the scenes when users first open the app. * Allan Malievsky will collate edits and mark the document as the source of truth for features and decision points. * Meeting participants will comment on the user-journey document and drop decision-point notes by end of play Monday. * Allan Malievsky and George Goldsmith will act as the arbiters to finalize which features are included at launch versus post-launch. * Bob Dougherty and Jacob Fandel will decide the submission strategy for App Store review versus TestFlight with a goal of presenting a build to Apple within approximately two to three weeks if possible. * Meeting participants will send their shipping addresses to Rosie for Muse delivery. * Bob Dougherty will perform a deeper review of Eyal's document and the entropy/algorithm implementation. * Meeting participants will open Eyal's PDF, review the wizard and logs, and send feedback to the group in the next few days. * George Goldsmith will schedule a call with the ring developer and Bob to evaluate downstream biometric options. * Meeting participants will confirm the pricing and tier logic (no seven-day trial) so it can be set in stone. * Allan Malievsky will add Jacob Fandel to Notion to restore access to the agenda * Allan Malievsky will send a hard copy of the Microsoft document to Eyal to resolve his access issue * Eyal will try to implement George's suggested check-in approach within the next few days * Meeting participants will provide comments on the materials by end of play on Monday Key Discussion Points: Meeting open and attendance The meeting began with greetings and attendance checks, noting one participant would be late due to a family arrival and confirming eight people were present. Allan was identified as the meeting lead for this session and the agenda and narrative had been shared with participants. Technical status — web demo, C/C++, and on-device processing The team reviewed technical carryovers: the web Bluetooth demo is already complete, and the C/C++ off-device signal-processing module has been written. The core decision discussed was whether to compute EEG processing on-device, which would require Jacob and Bob to coordinate integration of the module into the app. Music caching, background download, and quality considerations The group discussed caching full music files locally to support offline use and preserve high-quality binaural mixes, while acknowledging multi-gigabyte sizes make bundling impractical. The technical approach agreed is progressive background download with resumable caches so playback can use cached content even before download completion. Product model, pricing, and user-journey document Conversation centered on pricing and access: the working direction is keeping the 10-minute experience free and charging for the 40-minute subscription tier, with no free trial. Allan circulated a user-journey document and requested feedback; the team agreed to use that document to record decisions and edge cases so it becomes the source of truth. Decision governance and release scope The team debated decision-making approach and resolved Allan and George will serve as the unitary decision voice for launch scope while asking participants to still contribute comments. The group agreed to distinguish launch features versus downstream features and to maintain a simplified launch document if needed. Apple submission, TestFlight, and timeline The team reviewed App Store vs TestFlight workflows: a TestFlight distribution to friends and family is recommended while sending a build for Apple review in parallel. Apple review feedback commonly arrives within ~48 hours, but follow-up reviews can add time; Jacob and Bob were asked to consider the best submission strategy with the goal of being able to show something to Apple within roughly two to three weeks if feasible. Muse integration and developer wizard Eyal described integrating Bob's code into the web app and building a development-only wizard that captures six 45-second listening chunks to standardize data collection and developer understanding. He also created a lay-language log and documentation with screenshots and questions for the team to review. Simulation mode for development without hardware Eyal explained a simulation mode that produces six archetypal Muse journeys to test art generation and data flows without a Muse headset. He positioned this as a development tool to challenge artworks and enable testing in the absence of hardware. Entropy, algorithms, and team review The conversation moved to entropy and algorithmic outputs; Eyal asked whether "entropy" was the correct term, and Bob confirmed entropy/compression algorithms are part of the integration and encouraged a deeper review of the log. Eyal invited feedback on the shared PDF. Device performance and visuals Jacob and George raised on-device processing and device compatibility; Bob argued for testing but supported implementing computations in C for efficiency. Eyal explained that the empathic-art visuals are shader-based and can reduce frame rate and resolution to accommodate lower-end devices. Framing emotion, self-report, and user experience The team debated whether to present direct emotion labels; Bob cautioned against labeling due to EEG unreliability and recommended self-reporting. Allan suggested probabilistic "delta" feedback, Eyal noted the value of provocative/reflective output, and George proposed an educational check-in flow where labels emerge and users refine self-report. Biometric augmentation and downstream devices Discussion turned to augmenting EEG with heart-rate/PPG inputs and future devices; Bob noted some devices provide PPG data but vendor access and platform workflows (e.g., Apple workout gating) present integration challenges. George mentioned a potential downstream ring device and proposed a future call with its developer. Pricing, product rules, and content library Allan reviewed product agenda items including ratifying pricing and tier logic with no seven-day trial, policies for unsaved artwork recovery upon subscription changes, intention mapping during repeated sessions, and the design challenge of presenting limited music content in the library for launch. Check-in / Checkout decision and stabilization George proposed adopting the discussed check-in and checkout implementation to stabilize other decisions and asked that it remain unchanged for six months after deployment. Allan and others agreed this approach would reduce complexity and add high value. Notion comments and access Allan asked participants to add comments to Notion so they would be included in the next agenda and offered to add Jacob to restore access to the agenda. Jacob reported he could not access Notion and Eyal said he could not open the Microsoft document, prompting Allan to offer sending a hard copy to Eyal. Document consolidation and Notion limitations The team discussed having a single place for documents and noted Notion's limited handling of images, which motivated splitting content across tools and a willingness to consolidate despite tradeoffs. IL art placement and version readiness Jacob asked for a clear mapping of where IL's art fits into the user flow and what the expected outcome is to help Bob, Allan, and Jacob prepare the deliverables for the upcoming version. Implementation enthusiasm and short-term actions Eyal agreed to try implementing George's suggestion within the next few days and expressed enthusiasm for the idea, and George emphasized that ideas require implementation to deliver value. Pricing strategy, founding membership, and admin workaround The team discussed price points (previously discussed figures were referenced), agreed pricing requires deeper work, and noted integration with the streaming service would materially affect pricing; Laura recommended testing a founding membership with premium benefits and Jacob proposed using the admin UI to mark early users as premium as a simple near-term option. Localization, intros, and meeting close Bob raised localization questions; George confirmed Apple handles currency and proposed launching in English with French next via a Radio France collaboration, separating voice lead-ins from music as a scalable approach; George requested comments by end of play Monday and proposed a separate pricing discussion before the meeting closed. Notepad: * No notes