Mariah Caezza and Dominic Modugno found love in a familiar place – online.
But their love story is different from many of the ones you often hear about. The couple met on a social media app called Hiki, designed specifically for people living with autism. They got engaged in November 2024.
“It’s pure happiness,” Caezza told “CBS Mornings” about their relationship.
Caezza said it’s not easy living with autism, and that many can feel misunderstood at times.
“Sometimes you feel like you don’t fit in and other times you feel amazing and unique, like you have a gift,” she explained.
Hiki CEO Jamil Karriem, who launched the “first-of-its-kind” app in 2019, said his younger cousin was the inspiration behind the idea. Seven years ago, his cousin, who has autism, voiced how difficult it was to make friends and shared concerns about his future.
“Ultimately, he was terrified that he wouldn’t be able to find a partner,” Karriem explained.
Hiki CEO Jamil Karriem launched the app in 2019 after learning his cousin, who has autism, was having a hard time making friends. / Credit: CBS Mornings
After doing some research, Karriem discovered that adults living with autism are more likely to experience feelings of loneliness and die by suicide. A 2024 analysis estimates that the risk of people with autism dying by suicide are nearly three times higher than other populations, the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention reports.
That’s when Karriem decided to build a friendship and dating app for the neurodivergent community, accumulating more than 350,000 users across 100 countries with a variety of conditions – like ADHD, anxiety disorders, the autism spectrum and beyond.
“First I thought, ‘Why doesn’t this exist,'” Karriem said about the app. He was quickly reassured that he had “really something special” after hearing about connections people found on Hiki.
Now, years later, he said his cousin is thriving. And so are Caezza and Modugno, who say the app encouraged them to be more honest and open about their struggles. They live by the motto hanging on their wall: “When we have each other, we have everything.”
“He helps me by comforting me a lot. When I am having bad anxiety or a meltdown I just need cuddles and love, and he helps me a lot with that,” Caezza said.
Modugno uses music to make Caezza laugh and jokingly sings Doechii’s hit song “Anxiety.”
“I say that’s you; that’s you,” he jests.
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