Inspiration
Lukap was inspired by the emotional stress and urgency people face when they lose a pet. Many pet owners rely on scattered solutions like social media posts, paper flyers, or local groups, which often fail to reach the right people in time. We wanted to create a single, reliable platform that helps reunite pets with their families faster by leveraging technology and community collaboration.
What it does
Lukap helps people find lost pets and report found ones in a simple and efficient way. Users can:
- Post a lost pet with photos, description, and last known location
- Search for missing or found pets based on species, color, and area
- Report sightings without creating an account
- Connect directly with pet owners to act quickly
The platform prioritizes nearby and recent reports to increase the chances of recovery.
How we built it
We built Lukap as a web-based application with a focus on speed and usability:
- A clean, mobile-first interface for quick reporting
- A backend API to manage pet reports, images, and locations
- Location-based filtering using distance calculations to surface relevant matches
- Optimized image uploads to keep the experience fast even on slow connections
The architecture was kept simple and scalable to allow future enhancements.
Challenges we ran into
- Designing for users under stress while keeping the interface intuitive
- Handling inaccurate or incomplete location data
- Ensuring fast search results with growing data
- Managing image storage without sacrificing performance
- Balancing feature richness with simplicity
Accomplishments that we're proud of
- Building a functional end-to-end platform from idea to deployment
- Creating a smooth user experience for a sensitive real-world problem
- Implementing location-aware search that improves match relevance
- Receiving positive feedback from early users and testers
What we learned
- Empathy-driven design is just as important as technical quality
- Simple solutions are often the most effective in urgent scenarios
- Community-powered platforms can create real social impact
- Iterative development and user feedback dramatically improve usability
What's next for Lukap
- AI-powered pet image matching
- Real-time alerts for nearby sightings
- Multi-language support
- Partnerships with vets, shelters, and animal organizations
- Mobile app versions for faster access and notifications
Log in or sign up for Devpost to join the conversation.