People with autism look and navigate through world differently and sometimes there needs to be special tools to help them. And that’s why Nadia Hamilton founded tech startup Magnusmode, which was inspired by her brother Troy who has autism and subsequently led to the development of the app MagnusCards. The app gamifies daily activities and helps break these down tasks into smaller, more actionable steps with visual “how-tos” or digital flash cards so the user can get through different activities.
In an interview with Betakit, Hamilton describes how having illustrated guide helped Troy get through daily activities. “Getting dressed can be an overwhelming task for someone like Troy because he’s afraid of making a mistake. He’s afraid of getting to the end of doing whatever he’s doing and finding out he did it wrong,” said Hamilton. “There’s a lot of anxiety surrounding everyday activities for people with cognitive special needs. This keeps them from going through the door and even doing it.” The app is available on both iOS and Android.