Pison: Mobile Development and UI/UX for Peak Cognitive Performance
Brief information
Overview
Newfire helped Pison bring its innovative wearable technology to the consumer market by creating a customer-facing mobile application against a backdrop of tight deadlines.
The key challenge? Developing a user interface and experience for measuring cognitive performance—a new concept for commercial audiences. Additionally, Pison had a hard deadline to unveil the MVP, meaning the project needed to move fast.
Newfire’s team completed the MVP in just three months and delivered a solution that impressed both Pison and its audience. Their winning strategy included smart project management, multi-platform mobile development tools, such as Dart and Google Flutter, and audience-centric UI/UX design. Post-MVP, the project has maintained velocity, with Newfire’s team contributing timely, high-quality code and designs to Pison’s project.
Background
Pison, an MIT spin-off funded by the ALS Association and the National Science Foundation, developed a first-of-its-kind sensor using its proprietary electroneurography (ENG) method. The sensor, initially developed to help patients with ALS operate electronic devices through gesture control, translates the body’s electrical signals into machine-interpretable events via AI.
The technology quickly showed potential beyond gesture control. Embedded in Pison’s non-invasive wearable, the sensor now assesses cognitive function—a capability with strong appeal in consumer markets. Powered by a novel set of cognitive performance metrics, Pison’s technology helps optimize athlete performance, confirm alertness for employees in accident-prone jobs, and enhance mental acuity in knowledge workers.
To launch its consumer product, Pison needed a mobile application to deliver the cognitive monitoring experience. Newfire proved the perfect partner thanks to our extensive experience in medical, mobile, and IoT solutions and proven track record in accelerating mobile app development.
Newfire was an early adopter of multi-platform mobile application development frameworks like Google Flutter and is home to a robust, healthcare-experienced mobile development practice. Additionally, we bring specialized expertise in IoT data and integration, as well as alumni of wearable innovators like Fitbit.
Challenges and Solutions
Rapid Prototyping to Meet Deadlines
Pison needed to debut its wearable at the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January 2024 to take advantage of a once-a-year opportunity to generate massive awareness for innovative devices. That meant an MVP for its mobile application, Pison READY—the consumer interface of the Pison device.
Our project needed to move at a fast pace, and Newfire kept us on track by helping us develop our product strategy, earning our trust through high-speed, high-quality execution, and relieving us from the burden of micromanagement. Without their team, we wouldn’t be in the strong position we are in today.
Cristiano Cairo, Chief Product Officer at Pison
Pison’s team had a long list of requirements for the app and a short timeline to complete the prototype. To meet these demands, we deployed an experienced mobile development team reinforced with strategic roles, including:
- A mobile development advisor who optimized the team structure, established or adapted development processes, and created a detailed project roadmap. This helped streamline workflows and accelerate the development of the mobile app.
- A business analyst who translated requirements into actionable tasks for the development team. The BA handled feature prioritization, managed stakeholder expectations, and recommended removing non-essential features to keep the MVP on track while ensuring it would impress the CES audience.
Additionally, early in the project, Newfire provided advisory advice and targeted integration guidance to establish a strong foundation for high-speed, high-quality development.
The team completed the MVP in three months, just in time for the unveiling event. The prototype generated interest and a positive response which validated Pison’s idea and led to further, high-velocity development post-MVP.
UI/UX Design for Novel Health and Wellness Metrics
Pison’s audiences are largely unfamiliar with their proprietary metrics—Readiness, Mental Agility, and Focus. A key challenge in this project has been designing an application that communicates the value of these metrics and provides an intuitive measuring experience.
Adding to the challenge, the application design had to align with the Pison device’s existing visual elements, including its small screen and use of color codes, shapes, and lights, ensuring a consistent and user-friendly interface that complemented the hardware.
Newfire’s UI/UX designer contributed timely designs that met project requirements and formed a natural extension of the Pison device. In fact, design work soon exceeded the client’s expectations by aligning the app interface and features with the audience’s lifestyle.
The project featured a close collaboration between the UI/UX designer and business analyst, a hallmark of Newfire product projects. Together, they ensured Pison READY was not only user-friendly but also designed to foster habitual use, incorporating features that resonate with Pison’s athletic audience.
It can seem like a game at times because it’s so addicting, but it’s improving my mental focus, my capability, and preparing me to go about my day. More importantly, strap into a race car and have to make split-second decisions at 200 miles an hour.
Anthony Alfredo, NASCAR driver and Pison customer
Features like automobile-style dashboards and competitive leaderboards enhance the user experience and strengthen Pison’s market position by appealing to the competitive, performance-driven nature of its target audience, including race car drivers and baseball players.
Supporting Innovation With Deep Expertise
Apart from operational efficiency and project acceleration, Newfire also contributed deep expertise to Pison’s innovative project through cutting-edge technology, best practices, and creative problem-solving.
The demands on our team are high, but everyone is really dedicated and engaged. The project is incredibly interesting, the technology is tangible, and the team feels their skills are put to a true test.
Svitlana, Program Manager at Newfire Global Partners
For instance, the work Newfire’s engineering team—led by a mobile development advisor—has done to accelerate product development has had a lasting influence on Pison’s broader engineering practices. Today, Newfire’s approach is reflected in the design of microservices, the structure of dashboards, and the programming logic used across Pison’s organization.
Our design work has also significantly influenced Pison’s product development. After delivering an outstanding user experience for Pison READY, Pison’s leadership asked Newfire’s designer to create a unified UX framework for future products. This framework will streamline development, reduce workload, and ensure consistency across Pison’s entire product line.
The Human Impact
A true partner demonstrates mental alignment with your vision, anticipates your needs, and advises you where you need to go because they’ve been there before. All of this reflects our experience with Newfire and sets them apart from other service providers we've worked with.
Cristiano Cairo, Chief Product Officer at Pison
Cognitive Power to the People
Pison’s technology helps people manage their cognitive performance, allowing them to realize their true potential on the playing field, in the office, and at home.
By developing its customer-facing application, Pison READY, we are broadening access to an emerging class of tools that enhance human capabilities. For Newfire, this project has been an opportunity to advance our mission of building human-centric technology that pushes society forward.
From Consumer Markets to Healthcare Breakthroughs
Pison’s technology has its roots in the fight against neurological diseases, a mission that remains central to the company.
By supporting Pison’s entry into consumer markets, we have helped their team establish a stronger foundation for new revenue streams that will fund ongoing work in diagnosing and treating neurological diseases, as well as addressing injuries in professional athletes.
Work With Us
When complex technology needs to find its way into new markets, Newfire offers a straightforward path because we’ve done it repeatedly. Partner with us for strategic advice and road mapping, mobile development acceleration, and healthcare-experienced, market-minded UI/UX design.
