Kio Stark is an American author and teacher. She is notable for her research on her analysis of encounters with strangers and the impact they have on each other's lives.

Stark teaches about human relationships with technology at New York University's graduate Interactive Telecommunications Project, and coordinates the Knight Mozilla OpenNews Learning initiative.

When not writing books, Stark has worked in community research, journalism, interactive advertising, and game design.

She is also a consultant for startups and large companies helping them to think about stranger interactions among their users and audiences.

In 2016, Kio Stark delivered a TED Talk entitled, "Why You Should Talk to Strangers." In it, she explores the benefits of pushing past our discomfort when it comes to strangers and embracing those fleeting but profoundly beautiful moments of genuine connection.

Kio did doctoral work at Yale University's American Studies program, where she thought a lot about the history of science and medicine, race, urban studies, art, and then dropped out.

Kio has a child, Nika Stark Pettis, with Bre Pettis.