Alli – A Personal Life Assistant for Students

Alli – A Personal Life Assistant for Students

From chaos to clarity — in your pocket.

From chaos to clarity — in your pocket.

Domain

Domain

EdTech

EdTech

Mental Health

Mental Health

Services

UX / UI Design

Accessibility Design

Alli is a mobile-first life assistant designed to help university students manage both academic responsibilities and emotional well-being through a single, intuitive platform. This project was conceptualized and executed in just 8 hours as part of a national-level UX/UI competition in Lahore, and later refined for portfolio inclusion.

Alli is a mobile-first life assistant designed to help university students manage both academic responsibilities and emotional well-being through a single, intuitive platform. This project was conceptualized and executed in just 8 hours as part of a national-level UX/UI competition in Lahore, and later refined for portfolio inclusion.

I designed Alli to help university students manage tasks and emotions by creating a simple, empathetic, and mobile-friendly app based on user research and iterative testing.

I designed Alli to help university students manage tasks and emotions by creating a simple, empathetic, and mobile-friendly app based on user research and iterative testing.

"Alli was designed to be a companion, not just an app — one that understands your mood, reminds you to submit your assignment, and nudges you to drink water too."

"Alli was designed to be a companion, not just an app — one that understands your mood, reminds you to submit your assignment, and nudges you to drink water too."

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task success rate during post-competition user testing with real students

task success rate during post-competition user testing with real students

0hrs
0hrs

to complete full UX & UI for a mobile app in live competition

to complete full UX & UI for a mobile app in live competition

The Problem

The Problem

University students face significant cognitive overload and emotional challenges as they juggle academic deadlines, personal responsibilities, and mental well-being.


Existing productivity and wellness apps often feel impersonal, fragmented, or overly complex, failing to provide an integrated, empathetic support system.


There is a need for a mobile solution that combines effective task management with emotional support in a warm, intuitive, and personalized way, helping students manage their busy lives without added stress.

University students face significant cognitive overload and emotional challenges as they juggle academic deadlines, personal responsibilities, and mental well-being.


Existing productivity and wellness apps often feel impersonal, fragmented, or overly complex, failing to provide an integrated, empathetic support system.


There is a need for a mobile solution that combines effective task management with emotional support in a warm, intuitive, and personalized way, helping students manage their busy lives without added stress.

What I Did

What I Did

1

User Research

Conducted interviews and surveys to understand students’ cognitive and emotional challenges.

2

Goal Definition

Set clear objectives to reduce overload and provide empathetic support.

1

User Research

User Research

Conducted interviews and surveys to understand students’ cognitive and emotional challenges.

Conducted interviews and surveys to understand students’ cognitive and emotional challenges.

2

Goal Definition

Goal Definition

Set clear objectives to reduce overload and provide empathetic support.

Set clear objectives to reduce overload and provide empathetic support.

3

Persona & Journey Mapping

Created detailed user personas and journey maps to guide design decisions.

4

Wireframing & Prototyping

Designed intuitive wireframes and interactive prototypes focusing on task management and mood adaptation.

5

User Testing & Iteration

Tested with real users and refined the design based on feedback.

6

Mobile-First UI Design

Developed an accessible, friendly, and easy-to-use interface optimized for quick interactions.

3

Persona & Journey Mapping

Created detailed user personas and journey maps to guide design decisions.

4

Wireframing & Prototyping

Designed intuitive wireframes and interactive prototypes focusing on task management and mood adaptation.

5

User Testing & Iteration

Tested with real users and refined the design based on feedback.

6

Mobile-First UI Design

Developed an accessible, friendly, and easy-to-use interface optimized for quick interactions.

Design Process

Design Process

1 User Research

1 User Research

Alli is designed for university students aged 18–25 who juggle academics, work, and mental health challenges. Research revealed they often face task overload, use multiple disconnected apps, and struggle to consistently track their wellness, showing the need for a unified and supportive assistant.

Alli is designed for university students aged 18–25 who juggle academics, work, and mental health challenges. Research revealed they often face task overload, use multiple disconnected apps, and struggle to consistently track their wellness, showing the need for a unified and supportive assistant.

Through research, I developed three key personas—

Esha, a first-generation Pakistani student under cultural pressure;

Abdullah, an overcommitted high-achiever facing burnout; and

Avinash, an international student dealing with isolation and overwhelm.

Through research, I developed three key personas—

Esha, a first-generation Pakistani student under cultural pressure;

Abdullah, an overcommitted high-achiever facing burnout; and

Avinash, an international student dealing with isolation and overwhelm.

Insight Revelations:

1

75% of students struggle with task overload

2

68% students rely on multiple disconnected apps

3

22% consistently track their wellness, highlighting a clear need for a unified solution.

Insight Revelations

1

75% of students struggle with task overload

2

68% students rely on multiple disconnected apps

3

22% consistently track their wellness, highlighting a clear need for a unified solution.

2 The Colour Scheme

2 The Colour Scheme

#FF3100

#FF3100

Embodies urgency and emotion — a bold spark that signals action, energy, and attention.

Embodies urgency and emotion — a bold spark that signals action, energy, and attention.

#101010

#101010

Represents structure and stability — anchoring content with strong visual weight and contrast.

Represents structure and stability — anchoring content with strong visual weight and contrast.

#EEEEEE

#EEEEEE

Symbolizes clarity and calm — a blank canvas that helps users breathe and focus.

Symbolizes clarity and calm — a blank canvas that helps users breathe and focus.

2 What I Created

1

Your life at a glance.

Displays upcoming tasks, flashcards, recent chat activity, and quick-add buttons for new tasks or wellness logs — designed for minimal cognitive load and fast access.

2

Task Management

Three-tier task list with filters, AI task summaries, and priority-based grouping. Designed for students juggling tight deadlines and overloaded schedules.

3

Microlearning reimagined.

Interactive flashcard viewer integrated with academic tasks. Keeps students engaged in bite-sized study sessions throughout the day.

4

Progress that fuels consistency.

Log daily fitness, sleep, hydration, and mood. Includes a visual habit tracker and orange-gradient ‘Submit’ button for feedback reinforcement.

5

Chat System

Strategically placed high-frequency actions like “Withdraw,” “Share Link,” and “View Leaderboard” where users could act instantly — minimizing navigation and enabling dopamine-triggered behaviors (sharing, checking rank, etc.).

Outcomes & Impact

Despite being designed in under 8 hours, Alli successfully delivered a complete, mobile-first experience that addressed both academic overload and emotional well-being — a rare combination in the student productivity space.


  • Presented to a panel of judges during a live UX/UI competition in Lahore

  • 95% task success rate during post-event usability testing

  • Used as a research base for further academic work on mobile mental health tools

  • Commended for its balance of clarity, empathy, and accessibility in student-focused design

Reflection & Learnings

Designing Alli under real-time pressure forced me to focus on what mattered most — not the fanciest screens, but the clearest, most emotionally grounded experience possible.

Here’s what I learned:

  • Designing for stress means removing stress — from visual clutter to copy tone

  • Good accessibility is baked in early, not bolted on later

  • Emotional UX is not a trend — it's a competitive advantage when done right

  • Fast decisions don’t mean reckless ones — they mean prioritized, user-centered ones

What’s Next

If developed further, Alli could evolve into a full wellness and productivity ecosystem tailored to students’ unique cultural and academic challenges.


Key next steps:

  • Integrate real-time mood-adaptive UI feedback

  • Expand accessibility with local languages and voice recognition

  • Add journaling prompts, breathing exercises, and AI-powered nudges

  • Partner with universities or youth programs for pilot testing

Like What you See? Let’s build your next big thing.

Like What you See? Let’s build your next big thing.

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