THINKING AT SPEED
TO HELP A NATION

Elderly Singaporeans are often described as the digitally estranged. And because of the convenience of proximity, they've been able to get by without having to learn how to properly work the internet. So while the rest of us turned to online grocery shopping and delivery services when COVID-19 struck, this group who's most vulnerable to the virus still find themselves having to go out for their necessities.

We decided to use our skills to help.

In response to COVID-19 spreading rapidly in the community, the Singapore government introduced circuit breaker measures in an attempt to reduce the  numbers.

A big part of circuit breaker measures was ensuring that the elderly were safe in their home and not out in the community since they were most susceptible to the disease. These words from the government, however, seem to initially fall on deaf ears as we continue to see seniors out and about.

Digging deeper, we realized that many of these elders had no other choice. While the rest of the nation relied on online grocery and food delivery services, most of the elderly had no smartphone, no credit card and no idea how to get their necessities other than to make the trip themselves.

The technology that we're so very proud of has left a part of us behind.

There were two core groups we needed to connect, and they were in opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to technology. On one end, our solution had to be simple enough so seniors with no knowledge of how the Internet works could still use it to help. On the other end, we needed younger Singaporeans who were never separated from their mobile devices to help.

Our end product was a friction-less service that served as the middleman between the two.