Work / Case study 10
Clockwise
Focus timer for iOS
The problem
Most focus timers are punishment devices: red countdowns, guilt notifications, streaks that shame you when they break. Clockwise starts from the opposite premise — staying on task should feel calm. It pairs Pomodoro-style sessions with environmental themes and ambient soundscapes, and uses Apple's Screen Time API to actually block distracting apps while you work, not just ask nicely.
Decisions
- Reward accumulation, not streak anxiety. Finished sessions grow a productivity garden — the payoff for focus is something you watch build over time, and a missed day doesn't burn it down.
- Real enforcement. Integrating the Screen Time API (one of iOS's more restrictive entitlement surfaces) so blocking has teeth, with the UX care to make that feel protective rather than parental.
- Atmosphere as a feature. Environments and soundscapes aren't decoration — they're the product's answer to why you'd open it instead of a system timer.
Outcome
Shipped to the App Store in December 2025 — concept to review in a single focused month, the kind of cycle time that agent-assisted development makes routine.