[Life Act 3 Company] 'Nabi,' My Personal Medicine Assistant Developed by Theints

The Intz Develops 'Nabi' to Notify Medication Times
"Striving to Develop UI Suitable for Seniors"
"Aiming to Lead Digital Culture Focused on the Senior Generation"

Lim Gi-chae, CEO of The Ints, is being interviewed on the 3rd at The Ints in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] At 'The Intz' located in Yangjae-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul, employees of various age groups gather in small groups. From young employees in their 20s to senior staff in their 50s, this place is where the smart lifestyle caregiver device 'Nabi' was developed and began gaining word-of-mouth recognition. 'Nabi,' meaning 'My Personal Medicine Secretary,' is a smart device that helps elderly people manage their medication. If the user overdoses or misses a dose, a voice alert prompts them to take the correct amount of medicine on time. Additionally, it offers various services for seniors, including video call functions between the elderly and their caregivers. Throughout the office, several units of Nabi with their distinctive white exteriors were placed, and on a shelf along one wall, plaques such as patents and innovation product certification received through Nabi were displayed.

Im Gi-chae, CEO (58), who founded The Intz in 2019, said, "Most elderly people feel burdened using digital devices," adding, "We developed Nabi with the hope of reducing these difficulties and helping seniors spend their later years more happily and abundantly." Nabi provides medication management, video calls, dementia prevention games, and health information measurement functions.

Originally, Nabi was named 'YOLVING.' It is a compound of 'YOLD' (Young Old), meaning young seniors, and 'Loving' and 'Living,' symbolizing giving life, love, and youth to seniors. However, CEO Im changed the product name to make it more familiar to the elderly. He said, "Many found the word 'YOLVING' difficult, so we renamed it 'Nabi,'" explaining that it was inspired by how seniors commonly call cats 'Nabi.' Currently, YOLVING is used as The Intz's BI (Brand Identity).

In May, The Intz signed a business agreement with Gapyeong-gun, Gyeonggi Province, and installed Nabi devices in 20 households of elderly living alone in the county. The average age of seniors using Nabi there is 82. Would seniors over 80 have difficulty using smart devices? CEO Im designed and applied a simple and easy UI (User Interface) to ensure seniors do not feel discomfort. Not only did they use large fonts and simple language, but they also adopted a 'within 3 touches' implementation to eliminate complicated processes. No matter which function is selected, the desired feature can be executed with fewer than three touches. CEO Im said, "We worked hard to develop a UI suitable for seniors, and many elderly users operate Nabi without significant difficulty," adding, "We want to lead a digital culture centered on the senior generation." Thanks to these efforts, Nabi was selected as an innovative product by the Public Procurement Service last month.

Lim Gi-chae, CEO of The Ints, is being interviewed on the 3rd at The Ints in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

There was also a case where Nabi helped extinguish a fire early. On June 30, during heavy rain and lightning in Gapyeong-gun, a fire broke out in the circuit breaker box at the home of Grandma Choi, who lives alone. Subsequently, the household power was cut off, and the fire spread. At that time, Grandma Choi noticed that Nabi was still powered on and immediately made a video call to her family to inform them of the fire. Thanks to the family's report and the prompt arrival of firefighters, the fire was quickly controlled. CEO Im said, "Even I, who developed Nabi, did not expect it to be used this way," adding, "Based on this case, we updated Nabi to include a 119 emergency call function."

Before founding The Intz, CEO Im was a veteran with 35 years in the information technology (IT) industry. He also served as vice president at Sejong Telecom. What motivated him to establish a company for the senior generation? CEO Im said, "I have lived a relatively comfortable life, including serving as a vice president at a company," adding, "During that time, I wanted to give back the help I received from society, so I founded The Intz using the network and IT knowledge I had accumulated."

CEO Im expressed his desire to serve as a stepping stone to bridge the digital divide for the senior generation. He said, "Recently, more people have become interested in 'Well-Dying,' which means seniors have more things they want to do themselves," adding, "We want to be a stepping stone that helps seniors live their lives enjoyably."

Lim Gi-chae, CEO of The Intz, is being interviewed on the 3rd at The Intz in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

Below is a Q&A session.

- Please introduce Nabi.

▲ Nabi stands for 'My Personal Medicine Secretary' and provides various services that care for the lives of seniors. The most important function is medication management. If seniors forget to take their medicine or take it twice, Nabi notifies them via voice alerts. Caregivers can also check their parents' medication status in real time. The reason for planning Nabi was that my mother, who is in her 90s, once took blood pressure medicine twice. Additionally, Nabi supports video calls and dementia prevention games.

- What did you focus on when developing Nabi?

▲ Since it was developed for seniors, we had to create an interface that is easy for them to use. Therefore, we support large screens and large fonts, and all processes on Nabi are guided by voice. We also aimed to reduce complicated steps by implementing all functions with fewer than three touches.

- What distinguishes Nabi from other senior services?

▲ The key feature is two-way communication. For example, if a caregiver shares photos through Nabi, the senior can view and interact with them. Also, many seniors who initially fear digital devices become more comfortable using them through Nabi. Many elderly people cannot use smartphones, but by using Nabi, they naturally become familiar with digital devices. One of our goals is to enhance seniors' accessibility to digital technology.

- Why did you plan a product centered on the senior generation?

▲ My mother, who lives alone, was frustrated during the COVID-19 pandemic because she could not visit senior centers. While younger people can contact acquaintances via messengers, seniors often cannot. I kept thinking about how to solve this issue. Also, since I have worked in the IT industry, I thought about combining IT with senior issues.

- Nabi was selected as an innovative product by the Public Procurement Service in October this year.

▲ Thanks to our employees. Our company has staff of various ages: two in their 50s, one in their 20s, and four in their 30s. While developing Nabi, younger employees pointed out things I hadn't considered, and I pointed out things they didn't know, so Nabi was completed through this collaboration. Even I, who planned Nabi, did not expect the product to be so well developed. Nabi is the result of communication and teamwork with our employees.

- What do you think are the limitations of senior care culture?

▲ By 2025, the population aged 65 and over will account for about 20% of the total population. That means one in five people will be elderly. The aging problem is even more severe in rural areas. Currently, one care worker supports about 16 seniors on average. The number of seniors to be managed is increasing, but manpower is limited. Therefore, reducing the workload of care workers is crucial. I believe Nabi can help with this, and I hope it will significantly reduce their workload.