Put Your Phone Away: Yondr CEO on the Philosophy Behind Phone-Free Spaces

On with Kara Swisher

New York Magazine

News Commentary, News, Society & Culture

4.2 • 2.2K Ratings

🗓️ 16 January 2025

⏱️ 62 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

They’re incredible pieces of technology, they’re unbelievably useful, and we feel lost without them. Nonetheless, smartphones have become the bane of our existence. So Graham Dugoni started Yondr with a surprisingly simple and analog solution to their ubiquity: locking pouches that force cell phone users to put away their device while still keeping their phones on them. Now, they’re used everywhere from comedy shows, to concerts, courtrooms, and weddings. After the success of Jonathan Haidt’s The Anxious Generation, more and more states and school districts are instituting cell-phone bans — and, oftentimes, Yondr is the first company they turn to when they need help. Kara and Graham talk about the push to ban phones from schools, the company’s success, and his philosophical take on smartphones, social media and technology. Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find us on Instagram and TikTok @onwithkaraswisher Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, everyone from New York Magazine in the Vox Media Podcast Network. This is on with Kara Swisher,
0:16.8	and I'm Kara Swisher. Today I'm talking to Graham Degoni, the founder and CEO of Yonder.
0:22.7	It's a company that's mainly known for making pouches that lock cell phones. They can only be
0:27.2	unlocked with a proprietary magnetic key, and if you've been to a comedy show in the past few years,
0:31.9	there's a decent chance you've had to lock up your phone in a Yonder pouch. If you're
0:36.3	an American student in middle or high school, there's a very decent chance you've either had to lock up your phone in a yonder pouch. If you're an American student in middle or high school,
0:38.4	there's a very decent chance you've either had to lock up your phone in one of these pouches,
0:42.5	or you will in the coming years. The pouches are a simple but ingenious solution to a paradox
0:47.9	caused by smartphones. We love them and we need them, but they also can ruin everything from
0:53.1	weddings, concerts, and comedy shows to court proceedings. Graham started Yonder in 2014, before most people had
0:59.8	caught on to how pernicious cell phones can be. He takes a philosophical approach to technology,
1:05.2	and I want to talk to about that because we know our phones are killing us. Come on, they're addictive,
1:10.5	they're problematic, They're necessary.
1:12.8	You have to have them for work. And they also cause all kinds of problems. And we need to get a
1:17.5	hold of our issue. The other issue is technology leaders then have complete control of us. And you
1:23.9	know, we don't want that, especially these days. We have two expert questions for Graham, one from Jonathan Haidt,
1:30.6	whose book The Anxious Generation has kick-started a conversation
1:33.7	about the effects of cell phones on kids,
1:36.2	and Dr. Shamise Taylor, the principal of Phoenixville Area Middle School
1:40.0	in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania.
1:42.3	Stick around, and Dr. Taylor, go Phantoms.
2:00.7	Support for the show comes from NerdWallet.
	...

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