– It's cool to develop something groundbreaking. We're changing the way people think about medication use.

In a bright meeting room at the design agency Kadabra, industrial designer Carl-Gustaf Lundholm sits bent over sketches of what will become Dtablet. This product could change how people perceive and interact with medication use in everyday life.

«The more I work with it and think about it, the stranger it is that no one has developed new solutions before now. We still use the old pill organisers and pill boxes from the 1950s, but this is something completely different.»

From personal experience to innovation

The idea for the product stems from Dtablet founder Hallgrim Bjørvik's own challenges with medication adherence.

«I experienced firsthand how cumbersome and poorly adapted medication management is in today's life situations. The old pill organiser is still the standard – it's high time for an upgrade», says Bjørvik, who has been an entrepreneur since the age of 16. He has leveraged his experiences to identify a market need that no one else has addressed.

«I searched for years for a system that worked. Finally, I realised I had to create it myself,» he says.

Thus, Dtablet began to take shape.

From user insight to design

With his background as an award-winning industrial designer, having won seven DOGA awards, the Red Dot Design Award, and the German Design Award, Carl-Gustaf knows precisely how to transform good ideas into concrete products.

«I start by trying to find user needs and put myself in the situation the user is in when the product is to be used», he says about the design process.

«Then I try to create a product that allows the user to perform the task as easily as possible.»

This approach, often referred to as design thinking, is fundamental to Carl-Gustaf's work. In the Dtablet project, he has a unique advantage: a founder who has personally experienced the problem.

«I think it's great to work with people who know what they're talking about through their own experience. It's easier to figure out what the real needs are when it's so close», he says about the collaboration with the founder behind Dtablet. Bjørvik still uses medications that help him function in everyday life.

Three challenges – one solution

Dtablet aims to solve three main challenges that founder Bjørvik has identified. The first is to counteract stigma – that you don't have products that show you're sick, but products that don't say much about what they do, which you can carry with you all the time.

The second is about security – that you have a container that is locked, which unauthorised persons don't have access to. The third challenge is reminders to take medication at the right time.

From institution to individual

Carl-Gustaf sees Dtablet as a paradigm shift in how we think about medication use.

«There's an institutional thinking around today's solutions. But you can be sick and function perfectly fine», he points out, and says that stigma around illness can be a significant challenge:

«Other people's prejudices and views on medication use can be a limitation in the life of someone who functions well if they get medications.»

Designed for everyday life

To combat stigma, Carl-Gustaf has placed great emphasis on aesthetics and user-friendliness. Dtablet is being developed in three variants:

«The largest version, the idea behind it, is that you should be able to keep it out in the open at home. It's not something you want to hide away. We use textiles, which are materials commonly used in interior design, and have made the products softer.»

For the two smaller versions intended for use on the go, he has drawn inspiration from modern consumer electronics:

«For the smallest one, I've taken inspiration from the AirPods case. It can be a gadget you carry with you, which is somewhat anonymous so as not to signal that you're carrying medication.»

Experience from similar projects

This is not the first time Carl-Gustaf has worked with innovative health solutions. He talks about a previous project where he designed a camera for dental health:

«It was a camera for teeth for personal use. We utilised translucency, and with the aid of artificial intelligence, the images were processed to detect potential cavities.»

This experience in combining technology and user-friendliness in health solutions is valuable in the development of Dtablet. The product development involves a team of professionals with different expertise. 

Seeking retailers and distributors

Dtablet is planned to be launched in phases – first through pre-sales and then through regular sales. In the first phase, they are also seeking retailers and distributors for the direct sales of Dtablet.

The goal is to become a world leader in modern medication management.

«It's about understanding what mindset you have as a user in the situation you're in. We're not just designing a product, but a new way of thinking about medication use in everyday life», says Carl-Gustaf.