A mental health app bringing research-backed mindfulness to the palm of your hand
The Challenge
Oxford Mindfulness had a bold vision: make mindfulness accessible worldwide through a powerful digital platform. They needed a platform that combined courses, guided practices, and multimedia content—all within just four months. The challenge? Balancing speed, performance, and an engaging user experience to ensure long-term impact.
Beyond serving a general audience, the app also needed to include specific features for individuals with Visual Snow Syndrome—a rare neurological condition that can impact an individual’s vision, hearing, cognition, sensory processing, and quality of life. Since mindfulness has been proven to improve these symptoms under clinical trials, the Visual Snow Initiative partnered with Oxford Mindfulness to ensure the app could support their unique needs.
The Solution
Light-it partnered with the Oxford Mindfulness Foundation to design and develop a mobile app that makes mindfulness more accessible than ever. Whether users want to explore mindfulness theory or jump straight into guided meditation, the app offers a seamless experience for all levels—from beginners to experienced mediators.
With a mix of audiovisual content, written materials, and structured courses, the platform provides a flexible learning experience. Its freemium model allows users to access a free content, while premium content is available via subscriptions or one-time payments, ensuring accessibility for everyone.
Process and Workflow
The app was the result of multiple teams collaborating closely, each working at the same time within their own area of expertise. By combining different skills and knowledge, we managed to get the perfect solution. The teams and services involved were:
PRODUCT DISCOVERY
During this dynamic one-month phase, we engaged in weekly brainstorming sessions to delve into the challenges and pain points that needed to be addressed with the solution. This stage is where priorities were set and agreed upon.
Product Strategy & MVP Definition
We created a clear roadmap for Oxford Mindfulness MVP based on the technical knowledge of both Oxford Mindfulness and Light-it.
The project needed substantial research and ideation to establish the scope and evaluate requirements, such as incorporating accessibility for the Visual Snow community.
UX/UI design
Design was a key aspect throughout the whole project. It was an iterative process where we strategized, sketched, and refined our ideas repetitively until we crafted a precise wireframe to enhance our users’ mindfulness experience and the Oxford Mindfulness team.
Development & QA
The team brought the product to life, ensuring Oxford Mindfulness was engaged every step of the way. Â The team refined the initial concepts, creating detailed mockups that represented the final solution, along with interactive prototypes for key screens. We kicked off with the MVP, putting it to the test, and kept refining it through regular iterations.
Sneak peek of the solution
A personalized experience
The Oxford Mindfulness experience kicks off with a survey to assess and recommend the best content according to the user's level of expertise. This ensures a smooth onboarding to the app.
One source, multiple resources
Users can easily access courses, articles and practices, all in one place, while tracking their progress and staying updated on newly published content.
‍
The platform incorporates gamification elements to motivate users, encouraging them to maintain their streak and stay engaged.
An accesible and inclusive solution
Oxford Mindfulness partnered with the Visual Snow Initiative to create this app together and bring resources to those who suffer from this condition. The app includes a specially designed and optimized course and different themes, such as dark mode or blue light mode, that allow users with visual snow syndrome to get the best experience with the app.
Everything the team needs in one admin portal
Empowering B2B Partnerships
‍The app goes beyond individual users, allowing companies to offer mindfulness programs as an employee benefit. To support this, Oxford Mindfulness needed the ability to tailor course access based on company-specific learning plans.
‍
To give Oxford Mindfulness complete control, we developed an admin portal, enabling them to:
- curate content
- manage user access
- oversee course distribution
Why mindfulness matters?
Mindfulness isn’t just a trend—it’s a scientifically proven tool for mental well-being. According to the APA, mindfulness, especially meditation has benefits such as:
- Reduce stress
- Boost memory
- Sharpen attention
- Improve emotional regulation
- Enhance adaptability
An estimated 200 to 500 million people worldwide meditate daily and More than 75% of those who meditate do so for health reasons.
To make these benefits accessible to all, Oxford Mindfulness created the Oxford Mindfulness App,
which is now available in 170+ countries, making it easier to integrate mindfulness into daily life.
Feel like trying it?
