L.A. start-up At the Pool introduces people with shared interests Los Angeles start-up Hyphos Inc. launched a Web service Monday named At the Pool that introduces people to others based on their shared interests. At the Pool, which is described as "an exclusive community of extraordinary people," matches you with a new user from one of your "pools" every day based on an algorithm that uses shared interests as well as location, mutual friends, age, gender and other factors. The pools you can be part of are groups based on some uniting factor. At the Pool founder and CEO Alex Capecelatro said some examples of pools include interest groups, universities, nonprofits and neighborhoods. "Whether you're looking for someone to go cycling with, discuss start-ups or explore new restaurants, At the Pool helps you meet the people nearby who you want to know," Capecelatro said in an email. Right now, joining At the Pool requires an invitation - although if you're awesome, and you can describe why you're awesome, you just might get in. You can also get early access with a special code, including "LATimes." Capecelatro said At the Pool is only open in Los Angeles for now. The plan is to expand from the first public pool, which was built for Silicon Beach, and continue building other pools around the city. Later on, At the Pool hopes to expand to most major cities. The driving force behind At the Pool is helping people meet others around them, which Capecelatro says isn't something facilitated by Facebook. "Facebook is great at connecting with friends and family," he said. We're aiming to build a cohesive community to get people offline, meeting real people, in the real world. Capecelatro said meeting new people can be hard, even if it's your neighbors, and he said Hyphos wants to help change that with At the Pool. "We feel society isn't as social as it should be; it's tough meeting new people, and we're working to change that," he said. New Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer's other big news: She's pregnant