Question 1

What is Happenstance?

Accepted Answer

Happenstance is an AI-powered people search engine. Connect accounts like Gmail, Google Calendar, LinkedIn, and Twitter, and it builds a searchable map of the people you know, plus the networks of the groups you join. Describe who you are looking for in plain English and get ranked matches with the mutual connections who can introduce you.

Question 2

Which communities already use Happenstance?

Accepted Answer

Y Combinator batches, a16z Speedrun cohorts, StartX, Post Exit Founders, Old Girls Club, YPO chapters, and university alumni networks all run groups on Happenstance, alongside hundreds of smaller circles. A single batch group can pool the networks of hundreds of members into a graph of hundreds of thousands of people.

Question 3

How do communities use Happenstance?

Accepted Answer

Create a group and invite your members. Each member connects their own accounts, and the community becomes one searchable graph: search across every member's combined network, reach warm intros through each other's connections, and the operator can finally answer "who do we know at..." without asking around.

Question 4

Is this a member directory?

Accepted Answer

No, and that's on purpose: we used to offer a plain member directory and found it confusing alongside groups. Instead, Happenstance makes your community's combined network searchable. Describe who you need, and every result comes with the specific member who can make the intro.

Question 5

Do members have to share everything?

Accepted Answer

No. Sharing is mutual and opt-in: members choose which groups to join, see exactly what each group shares, and can leave at any time. Email and DM content and attachments never reach our servers. We use only who messaged who, and when. Public profiles show a constellation of named people you know by default, which each member can turn off anytime. We never share, sell, or use anyone's data to train AI models.

Question 6

How do we onboard a new cohort?

Accepted Answer

Invite them to the group, and each person connects their accounts as part of joining. You can run cohorts as their own groups or fold everyone into one alumni-wide graph, with email domain restrictions where you need them.

Question 7

What does it cost for a community?

Accepted Answer

Groups are free to create and free for members. Pro is $30 per month per person, or $24 per month billed yearly, for heavy users, and group billing lets the community sponsor those seats from one card.

Question 8

Can members search from Claude or ChatGPT?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Happenstance has an MCP server and a developer API, so members can run network searches from Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, or anything else that speaks MCP.

Make your community's network searchable

How communities use Happenstance

One searchable network for every member

Find the member who can make the intro

And everything else communities search for

Your network is bigger than you think

The best communities run on Happenstance

Private and secure

Frequently asked questions

Make your own luck