Research at Niagara Launcher
Digital Wellbeing Initiative
1.7 Million Hours Each Day
This is how much time our 800,000 daily active users spend in six of the biggest social media apps.1
As an ad-free home screen company, we don't profit from screen time. This gives us the freedom to do research and share insights from our user base, like the one above, for the public good and to encourage healthier habits.
We do this through our Digital Wellbeing Initiative, where users can choose to donate their usage data and help us study phone use together with academic research partners.
Join the InitiativeWork With Us
1 YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Reddit, TikTok, and X. Extrapolated from a subsample of 10,934 users who opted in to donate their pseudonymized usage data for research through the Digital Wellbeing Initiative (164,165 days of use, July-August 2026).
Why a Home Screen Company Does Research
Many digital platforms try to keep users engaged with their phones because they monetize attention. Niagara Launcher doesn't.
10 Minutes or 10 Hours
No matter our users' screen time, we get paid the same: only when someone upgrades to Niagara Pro. In fact, many users tell us they choose Niagara Launcher because it helps them use their phone less. So our incentive is to help users engage with their phones only when they truly want to, and to put it down when they don't.
We're Just 8 People
... currently working at the company, and all of us grew up with smartphones. We have every reason, business and personal, to study digital wellbeing: to learn from our user base, build supportive features, and publish what we find.
High-Quality, Ethical Research
... is hard to do and takes a lot of time. This is why our psychologist and researcher, Dr. Lucas Haraped, leads the Digital Wellbeing Initiative, working together with academic research partners. Their methods, ethics review, and peer review give us reliable results that serve not only us but also the public good.
Work With Us
For Researchers
We're conducting research with a longitudinal opt-in panel of around 25,000 Niagara Launcher users to date, including in-situ micro-surveys, behavioral interventions, and questionnaire infrastructure. We're GDPR-compliant, open-access friendly, experienced with academic partnerships, and open to joint publications.
For Educators
Are you working on digital literacy, science communication, or consumer policy? We're happy to partner for citable evidence, talks, or other collaboration.
For the Press
We're open to interviews and offer a research press kit on request.
Our product press kit is available for reference.
Dr. Lucas Haraped
Lucas leads the Digital Wellbeing Initiative. He holds a PhD in cognitive psychology, with a research focus on attention.
How the Digital Wellbeing Initiative Works
The Digital Wellbeing Initiative is an opt-in research program where you, as a Niagara Launcher user, can donate your usage data. We don't collect this kind of data by default.
You can leave anytime under Niagara Settings > Advanced > Privacy Settings > Digital Wellbeing Initiative, and we'll stop collecting your usage data.
What do you share?+
- When and how long you use which apps
- When you unlock your phone
- How your home screen is set up
- Which notifications you receive
- Your device model, Android version, and country
Your data is pseudonymized and not linked with personal identifiers like your name, phone number or email.
What don't you share?+
- No name, email, or other direct identifiers
- Nothing you do inside apps
- No notification content
- No location beyond your country
How do we keep your data private?+
Your usage data is tied to a random ID once you join. We don't link it to your name, email, phone number, or hardware identifiers. By default, pseudonymized personal data is deleted from our servers after 90 days. Only anonymized statistics remain. The only exception: we might ask you to opt in to a longer data retention period when you take part in a specific, named study. Publishing findings in academic journals often takes a long time. Therefore we ask to keep pseudonymized personal data until publication is completed, but never longer than 7 years. Published data is always aggregated and anonymized and therefore harmless regarding privacy.
We only use usage data for research and for internally improving Niagara Launcher. We never sell usage data, and we never use it for advertising. You can request your own data with one tap in the app. To have all of your data deleted, email [email protected].
For details, see Data We Collect as Part of the Digital Wellbeing Initiative and our Privacy Policy Overview.
Digital Wellbeing Features
Usage Breaker
Gentle reminders during long sessions in apps you feel you're using too much.
Notification Summary
Holds back the notifications you choose and delivers them in two or three batches a day, so you can stay informed without the constant noise.
More to Come
We're currently working on new and better features to support intentional and healthy phone use.
Become a Beta Tester to be the first to receive updates.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Niagara Launcher collect my usage data by default?+
No. Usage data for research is only collected if you opt in to the Digital Wellbeing Initiative.
How is the data stored?+
Pseudonymously, tied to a random ID and never to your name, email, phone number, or hardware identifiers.
Do you sell the data or use it for advertising?+
No. It's used for research and for improving Niagara Launcher, nothing else.
Can I see my own data?+
Yes. You can request a full export anytime under Niagara Settings > Advanced > Privacy Settings > Digital Wellbeing Initiative > Request my data.
How do I join?+
Install Niagara Launcher, then turn on the Digital Wellbeing Initiative under Niagara Settings > Advanced > Privacy Settings. You can leave the same way, anytime. Already have Niagara Launcher? Join the Initiative with one tap.
Why does a home screen company do wellbeing research?+
Because we don't earn money from your screen time. We earn money once you're happy enough with our home screen to upgrade to Niagara Pro. That gives us every reason to learn what keeps you happy with your phone, and to build for it.
Why do you work together with universities?+
Doing high-quality, ethical research is hard to get right and takes a lot of time, more than a company our size can do alone. That's why we work with academic research partners: their methods, ethics review, and peer review give us reliable results that serve not only us but also the public good.
Contact
For questions, data requests, or collaboration ideas: [email protected]