Reclaim

Over het initiatief / About the initiative

In welke fase zit jouw initiatief? / In what stage is your initiative?

Ideefase

Heb je jouw initiatief al gevalideerd? / Did you validate your initiative?

While Reclaim is still in the early development stage and has not undergone formal user validation, the core problem it addresses is widely acknowledged: our ability to focus is declining, and digital environments are increasingly designed to fragment attention. This is not just anecdotal — it’s backed by scientific literature, rising mental health concerns, and the lived experience of students, professionals, and knowledge workers alike. I’ve had many informal but consistent conversations with people who strongly resonate with the concept. Their feedback reflects a clear desire for a tool that goes beyond blocking distractions and actually helps them understand and retrain their attention. Structured validation is my next priority. I’m currently exploring low-barrier prototypes (such as webcam-based tracking) to begin collecting user data and feedback. The aim is to move quickly toward testing real use cases and iterating based on real-world results.

Meer informatie over jouw initiatief / More info about your initiative

Modern life is cognitively overwhelming. Between endless notifications, social media loops, and multitasking, many people — including myself — experience a constant sense of mental fatigue and scattered attention. Yet unlike steps, calories, or screen time, we have no meaningful way to measure where our attention goes or how much energy it costs us. That’s the gap Reclaim is addressing.

Reclaim is a neurotechnology platform that uses wearable devices to monitor real-time attention-related signals — such as blink rate, eye movement, motion, and eventually EEG brainwave data. These signals are interpreted by AI models that classify different cognitive states (e.g. deep focus, mental fatigue, passive scrolling). The result is a clear, visual breakdown of how your cognitive energy was spent throughout the day — turning something abstract and invisible into something measurable and actionable.

What makes Reclaim different is that it doesn’t try to block distractions or maximize productivity. Instead, it helps people build awareness of their mental patterns and gradually retrain their attention — like a fitness tracker, but for focus. Over time, the platform will offer personalized attention training based on your unique brain patterns, empowering users to take back control of their most valuable resource: their mind.

The idea stems from personal struggle, but the impact reaches far beyond me. Students, creatives, and knowledge workers across the world are increasingly struggling to focus — not due to lack of discipline, but because the digital environment is not designed for our brains. Reclaim offers a path to change that.

Wat is er anders/nieuw aan jouw idee/oplossing t.o.v. bestaande oplossingen? / What is different/new about your idea/solution compared to existing solutions??

Most existing solutions in the attention space focus on blocking distractions (like website blockers or app timers) or tracking digital behavior (like productivity analytics or screen time reports). These tools may offer short-term relief — but they don’t address the root issue: the erosion of cognitive clarity caused by constant, layered overstimulation.

Reclaim takes a fundamentally different approach. It uses biometric signals — such as blink rate, eye movement, motion, and EEG — to monitor how the brain responds in real time, providing insight into when a user is focused, distracted, or mentally fatigued. It shifts the focus from managing behavior to understanding and rebuilding attention as a mental skill.

Unlike most tools, Reclaim is not an app — and that’s intentional. In today’s world, the attention economy operates far beyond phones. It includes TV, ads, newsfeeds, emails, algorithmic timelines, even visual noise in public spaces. Screens are just one channel. That’s why Reclaim exists as a wearable device — to create physical and cognitive separation from the very systems that compromise attention. It gives users real-time, actionable feedback without asking them to open yet another screen.

This combination — using internal biometric insight while remaining separate from overstimulating environments — makes Reclaim a fundamentally new kind of tool: not just for productivity, but for reclaiming autonomy over the mind in a world designed to fragment it.

Wat zijn jouw volgende stappen om het verder te ontwikkelen? / What are your next steps to develop the initiative?

My immediate next steps are focused on building a lean but functional MVP and validating the concept with real users:

1. Build a low-fidelity prototype
   I’m developing a webcam-based attention tracker that uses blink rate and gaze direction to estimate focus. This will simulate the wearable’s core feedback loop without requiring custom hardware yet.

2. Recruit early test users
   I plan to test this prototype with students and knowledge workers — people who depend on deep focus — to gather initial feedback on usability, accuracy, and value.

3. Assemble a technical advisory team
   I’m currently reaching out to experts in embedded systems, biosignals, and neurotech to assess signal quality and explore feasible sensor combinations for the first-generation wearable.

4. Design the first feedback interface
   I’m sketching a simple attention “dashboard” that visualizes mental fatigue, focus zones, and attention recovery patterns across a day — to help users not just track, but understand their attention.

5. Define the data pipeline & AI scope
   Using open EEG/gaze datasets, I’ll begin designing the machine learning models that classify cognitive states in real time — starting small, but with a long-term architecture in mind.

Wat heb je nodig om (nog meer) impact te maken met dit initiatief? / What do you need to make (more) impact with this initiative?

To make meaningful impact with Reclaim, I need the right support to move from concept to tested solution — and ultimately, to people who need it.

First, I’m looking for a technical co-founder or collaborator with experience in embedded systems or wearable tech. Reclaim’s vision relies on accurate, real-time sensing of cognitive signals, and building the first functional prototype requires deep technical expertise.

Second, I need mentorship from experts in neurotechnology and behavioral science — to make sure the solution is not only technologically feasible, but grounded in scientific understanding of attention and human behavior. I want to build something that’s not just novel, but truly useful.

Third, I need access to early users and real-world testing environments — students, professionals, and creatives who struggle with focus — to validate the solution, refine the interface, and ensure it creates actual cognitive benefit, not just another metric to track.

These three things — the right person, the right guidance, and the right testing ground — will allow me to move beyond ideas and into impact. Reclaim doesn’t need massive scale right away. It needs honest feedback, meaningful traction, and a clear first use case. That’s what I’m building toward.