Sanct, the Singapore-registered social app where first friends are added in person, met 78 visitors over two days at booth SF09 in the Showcase Zone of Tech in Asia Conference 2026, held at Sands Expo and Convention Centre on 15 and 16 September. Most visitors were start-up founders, followed by community builders and corporate teams; two institutional investors and a family office also stopped by. The conversations that stayed with founder Sion Abednego were about mental health, and Sanct is now in early talks with entrepreneurs and community builders in the mental health and social enterprise sector. Sanct now has more than 350 active users, and the 1,600 people on its waiting list are being let in gradually. Episode 4 of Sanct’s short film series is released on Tuesday 22 September at 5pm Singapore time.
SINGAPORE – The “being there” caps ran out before the second day was over. Over two days at Tech in Asia Conference 2026, 78 visitors were counted at Sanct’s booth, SF09 in the Showcase Zone at Sands Expo and Convention Centre, to meet the Singapore-registered start-up’s founder, add Sanct to their phone’s home screen and take home its swag.
Most of them were start-up founders. Community builders were the second-largest group, followed by corporate teams. Two institutional investors and a family office also visited the booth.
Sanct is a social app for close friends and family. A user’s first friends are added by meeting in person and scanning each other’s QR code; search and friend suggestions open only after five friends, and reach only friends of friends. At the booth, visitors did exactly that: they added Sanct to their home screen, and some added each other on the spot.
On Tuesday at 3.01pm, while the conference floor was busy, Sanct launched on Product Hunt live from the booth.
What visitors talked about
The conversations Mr Abednego remembers most were not about features. Several visitors told him about a friend they had lost to a mental health struggle, and said they hoped a smaller circle, one where people notice when someone goes quiet, could be one way to help.
Those conversations have already led somewhere. Sanct is now in early talks with entrepreneurs and community builders in the mental health and social enterprise sector about working together. Nothing has been signed, and no names are being shared yet.
The topic is a live one in Singapore. In the Institute of Mental Health’s National Youth Mental Health Study, released in 2024, about one in three residents aged 15 to 35 (30.6 per cent) reported severe or extremely severe symptoms of depression, anxiety or stress.
Sanct is not a mental health service. Its idea is smaller: a place with no strangers, where a family or a close group of friends shares real moments, checks in with each other emotions, and those far apart can meet in our virtual space.
The swag
The cream “being there” caps were the first to go and ran out on the second day. The “be there.” tote bags were next in demand. Of the two sticker packs, visitors picked the blue Sticker Pack 01 most often.
“I want to thank Tech in Asia. This was our second time at their conference, after Jakarta last year, and our first booth in Singapore,” said Mr Sion Abednego, founder of Sanct. “The floor felt more open this year, and the coffee corner did what it was meant to do: people stayed and talked. I am grateful to everyone who came to SF09: the founders, the community builders, the students, and the people who took the time to tell me about a friend they had lost. Conversations like those are why I keep building Sanct. It was great to meet all of you.”
How user data is handled
Sanct has no ads and no public feed, and it does not sell user data to third parties. Every moment a user shares has an audience they choose: everyone in their circle, selected friends, or only themselves. Sancty, the small companion inside the app, processes data only inside the user’s own account in order to respond, and this data is not used to train public AI models. Sanct’s privacy policy is published at https://sanctsocial.app/privacy
Traction and what comes next
Sanct opened its closed beta on 23 August at Jakarta’s Car Free Day, where 147 people signed up on the first day. Within a week it had more than 150 active users. It now has more than 350 active users, and the 1,600 people on its waiting list are being let in gradually. The beta is now over. Sanct will be available first in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, on a freemium model: core features stay free, and optional premium features will follow, with no ads in either.
Episode 4 of Sanct’s short film series, which follows a family split between Jakarta and Singapore, is released on YouTube on Tuesday 22 September at 5pm Singapore time. It picks up where Episode 3 ended: inside the Sanctum.
Sign-ups for Sanct are open at https://sanct.social
This press release has also been published on VRITIMES
