Highlight and Glancee: Find People You Like Nearby

Have you ever wondered about the people you cross paths with every day? The strangers you live so close to yet have no concept of who they are? Have you ever thought about the strange and random ways  in which we seem to make friends?

Well, the fact is, most of us have and with mobile technology, meeting new people just got a big dose of augmented reality. Apps like Highlight and Glancee are taking SXSW by storm and the the idea behind them is simple: Use your social data to recommend people you might like to meet in your vicinity.

The apps take common friends and interests and use your location to recommend people around you that you might just have a lot in common with. The rest is up to you and you can choose to introduce yourself or just lurk. I plan to give Glancee a try (they have their Android app out already), but Highlight seems to be the bigger story, at least at SXSW.

Does this idea scare you or would you use the app to meet someone new? Do you like the idea of meeting someone that way? Does it give new relationships a better chance having that base of common interests and connections? Let us know what you think and give one of them a try, even just to see who is around you!