Mivo Scrolling: An Attempt to Curb Doom Scrolling by Students

You probably think you spend about two hours on your phone daily. You are likely wrong. The average Nigerian spends over five hours on their phone and checks their screen more than 200 times a day. Pranshu Raithatha, a high school student from Cumming, Georgia, suspected most people had no idea of this statistics. He then decided to do something about it.

Together with fellow teen entrepreneur Harsh Mehta, Raithatha built Mivo Scrolling, an app that does not block your apps or set usage limits. Instead, it starts by asking you to estimate how much time you spend scrolling each day, and then shows you the actual number.

The Point of Mivo Scrolling

The gap between the two is the whole point. Most screen time apps approach the problem through restrictions like timers, blockers, guilt-inducing notifications. Raithatha wanted to try something different. “I believe lasting behavior change starts with awareness, not restriction,” he said. Mivo builds that awareness by helping users notice their scrolling patterns and asking why they are opening certain apps in the first place.

The Building Process

The app went through several rounds of rethinking before it reached its current form. Early versions looked like a traditional screen time tool. But after talking to real users, Raithatha realized people did not want more rules. Rather, they wanted more clarity. He scrapped the original concept and rebuilt around that insight.

That willingness to listen is now one of his biggest lessons from the process. “The first idea is rarely the best one,” he said.

What the Future is like for Mivo Scrolling

Mivo is currently available on iOS, with an Android version in development. Raithatha’s long-term vision is for the app to become the go-to tool for building healthier, more intentional relationships with technology. He hopes to achieve this not by taking your phone away but by making you think twice before you pick it up.

What Other Student Entrepreneurs Can Learn

Pranshu Raithatha and his partner Metha’s idea is a pointer that student entrepreneurs have innovative ideas that can challenge existing prototypes and proper solutions that are not only efficient but lasting.