Shift

Synopsis

Shift uses wearable data to detect rising stress and responds with quiet, ambient cues and gentle movement that nudge users toward quick recovery before stress escalates.

Credits:

Professor - Hannah Chung & Cutter Hutton

Capabilities:


3D Visualisation
Prototyping
CMF Analysis
User Testing

Date:
Dec 9th 2025
 














How do people de-stress at work?



Doomscrolling

Doom-scrolling keeps the brain overstimulated, preventing the mental stillness needed for real recovery.


Caffeine beverages

Caffeine temporarily masks fatigue with stimulants instead of restoring depleted cognitive energy.


Unhealthy short-term relief

Smoking creates brief relief through ritual and nicotine, but it doesn’t address or reset the underlying stress.







Existing Solutions -  Health Tracking DevicesUsers have to repeatedly check their phones for stress data, which can be distracting and often lacks meaningful context.
























Design Criteria


Subtle Signals

User should receive information from the product through peripheral vision and senses

Ambient

The product should appear approachable, conveying softness, roundness and calmness.

Playful Interactions

The product should reward mindfulness and calmness through a playful manner




















Focused Ideas


Light and Color 

A desktop device that has a secondary function of attracting the user’s attention through light and color sensitivity.

Transparency and Opacity

A dedicated device that can reflect the user’s state of mind through opacity and transparency.

Movement

A dedicated desktop device that attracts the user’s attention through subtle movement and change of device’s silhouette.






































A flow indicator Gentle movement that nudges the user to take a break and recover









Meaningful recoveryThe device will stay shifted during the recovery and will return when the user reaches the completed recovery threshold.









Personalise the device to your workflowUser is able to adjust the responsiveness of the device and set recovery goals through the app interface.










Inspired by the coastReminiscent of the rocks and pebbles along the coastline.