Eben Pingree’s life was altered forever in 2022 when his mother, 78, and father-in-law, 80, were both diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in the same week. The simultaneous onset of their illnesses sent him on an emotional journey that was both heartbreaking and revelatory. As their conditions worsened, Eben found himself grappling with the agonizing question, “What can I do?”
“It was a blow that shook our whole family,” says Eben. He’s the kind of guy who values family above all else. In what he affectionally dubs “an urban family compound,” Eben and his wife and three kids live two flights away from his parents, and his younger brother’s wife and three kids in a downtown Boston three-flat. His older brother and his four kids are blocks away. Eben’s in-laws are a 40-minute car ride, present for weekly dinners and sideline attendees at his children’s busy roster of soccer, lacrosse and gymnastics events.
“My kids pass their grandparents in the halls every day and both sets of grandparents are a huge part of our lives,” says Eben.
The diagnoses created a sense of urgency to find a way for his children—Cole, 10, Thayer, 6, and Beckett, 3, to forge even deeper connections with their grandparents.
Technology plus narrative strengthens family ties
It was that revelation that led to the creation of Kinsome, a digital platform designed to inspire these vital connections, particularly in the face of challenges like distance or aging-related memory loss.
A storyteller and tech entrepreneur, Eben found a creative way to combine technology with his passion — creating new solutions inspired by rewriting the narrative — to foster even deeper connections between his children and their grandparents. His response—creating the Kinsome app—is a perfect example of how storytelling and technology can be used to strengthen relationships, promote emotional well-being, and bridge generational gaps.
What started as a personal mission to support his own family blossomed into a global initiative aimed at tackling the loneliness and isolation epidemic facing older adults everywhere.
A 2023 national poll on healthy aging from the University of Michigan found that about 37% of older adults (aged 50 to 80 years) experienced loneliness, and 34% reported feeling socially isolated. This disconnection can lead to all kinds of health risks including cardiovascular issues, weakened immune system, obesity, and dementia, and increases the risk for premature death by 29%.
But there is hope.
Grand Connections: Grandparenting boosts mental health
U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy says intergenerational connections can be a “source of healing and well-being hiding in plain sight” in his 2023 advisory report on the issue.
The Kinsome platform is how Eben and cofounders Mike Gerbush, Ashley Hocking and Brianne Baker hope to take a bite out of that loneliness epidemic. The iPhone version debuted in September 2024 and allows kids to send audio snippets, photos, videos, and drawings to their grandparents, who receive notifications via email or text.
The social journaling app is powered by AI technology and is geared for kids ages six to 11. Kinzey, a robot from outer space, is the star of the show, prompting the grandparents and grandkids with questions that start with the child’s experience and aim, to inspire in-depth story sharing from the grandparents.
“We’re using technology tools to improve bonding,” says Eben. “We are trying to spark conversations about experiences each generation can relate to versus questions that just prompt one-word answers, like ‘yes or no.”
— Eben Pingree
Building a career on the power of stories to heal
After graduating from Williams College, Eben interned for his favorite author, Dave Eggers then moved to another publishing house where he worked on a book about his childhood hero, rock legend Bruce Springsteen. He founded his first startup while attending the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College before moving into the world of product management. Afterwards he spent eight years in senior product roles at two successful Boston-area startups, Session M (sold to Mastercard), and EverTrue (sold to Rubicon Technology Partners).
What becomes of the broken hearted
Even though Eben’s children and parents live two flights of stairs away, they use the app daily to prompt stories and memories.
“It takes countless shared moments and tiny interactions to support relations that span a half century or more,” says Eben. “It’s hard to accumulate these through occasional visits and forced video calls. We’re trying to open the window for more regular daily connections that go beyond the ‘yes and no question’ interactions.”
Eben’s family story and his development of the Kinsome app are a modern application of narrative practices. By using technology as a tool to facilitate deep storytelling, the app encourages emotional connections, empathy, and shared experiences among grandkids and their grandparents.”
Looking ahead, one of the goals for Kinsome is to expand its use for tweens and teens.
Narrative Mindworks Questionnaire
1. What’s your idea of perfect happiness?
Sitting by a fire with family and friends near a fast-flowing river talking and listening to music. That’s all I need (maybe some wine too).
2. Which living person do you most admire?
Since I can’t pick between my two parents, I’ll go with my celebrity hero: Bruce Springsteen: I love his music, and consider him to be one of the greatest lyricists and storytellers ever. But equally importantly, I love the values he stands for and lives out.
3. Who are your favorite writers?
I fell in love with Dave Eggers writing in college, and was lucky to work as an intern for him as my first job out of college. While I quickly decided the world of editing and publishing wasn’t for me, I remain a huge fan of his work and am currently reading his book, The Eyes & The Impossible, to my two older kids.
4. What are you most grateful for?
Family. I hit the jackpot on that front, and would be nowhere without them.
5. What’s next on your bucket list?
This might be cheating, but I’m excited to spend the rest of my career building a company focused on strengthening the bonds within families. I believe family can often be the foundation of good social health, which has proven to dramatically impact physical, cognitive and mental health. We’ve let that foundation crumble over the last century as families have gotten more geographically dispersed, but we think new technology developments can help us repair it.
