Finally an App That Splits the Bill Fairly, All Things — Including Privilege, Gender, and Race — Considered

The app concept was developed as part of a comedy hack day, so, sadly, it is not real.

Imagine this: Splitting the bill with a group of friends at restaurants is no longer a struggle. This blessed scenario could be possible because of a new (fake) app called "Equipay." Here's how it works: After opening the program, an option to select the other members at the table is offered. Then, the technology divides the price among all diners involved based on gender, social, and racial inequalities. Wait, what? Step back, rewind, and watch this video of the concept, which came out of a hackathon put on by Cultivated Wit called Comedy HackDay.

The group behind Equipay won the hackathon this year in San Francisco with their app concept that provides "reparations one meal at a time," by allowing "you and your friends to split the cost of a meal in accordance with gender and racial income inequalities."

In the video that plays like a sales pitch for this app, group member Luna Malbroux breaks down the calculator-style system that takes the privilege of each person in the group into account to calculate how much each should pay for a meal. Anyone who takes issue with the calculation can lodge a protest within the app by choosing an option from the "claim less privilege" menu; watch what happens when they try, though.

And finally, keeping in mind "that people love social recognition for being socially conscious," Malbroux said, there is a "share" feature that rewards users with pre-prepared social media fodder like "I helped fix the wage gap with lobster bisque."

Does this app have serious prospects or should it remain humorous fun? Feel free to leave thoughts in the comments section below.

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