Library / Watch / Think Autism Melbourne 2026
Findings, Think Autism Melbourne 2026
Focus Bear’s founder reported trial results from 235 university students
In short
At Think Autism Melbourne in 2026, Jeremy Nagel said a randomised trial of his self control app showed less smartphone addiction. Think recordings from 2023 show how differently the product was first described.
Read it instead, 4 minutesThe transcript
The story
Jeremy Nagel told the autistic entrepreneurs showcase at Think Autism Melbourne on 30 May 2026 that his company had tested its product in a randomised controlled trial with 235 university students. Focus Bear, which he described as a digital self control tool for autistic and ADHD teenagers and adults, had produced what he called a “statistically significant and clinically meaningful reduction in smartphone addiction”, along with improvements in quality of life and in academic self efficacy. He said more than 20,000 people were using the app.
The claim was made in a short pitch, and Nagel did not name a journal, a trial registry or a research partner. The results stand here as he reported them, and no published report of the trial was cited at the event. They were still unusual for the setting. Most of the founders at the showcase described their products through their missions or their clients, and Nagel was the only one to present a controlled trial with named outcome measures.
Sign in to keep reading, listening and watching.
Sign in with your email and everything in the Library is open to you: every story, every talk and every episode. It is free and it always will be. If you can, a donation helps keep it free for everyone.
Sources the story draws on
- Triumph over challenge: Turning neurodiversity into a strength (opens in a new tab), RMIT University
- The Science Behind Focus Bear (opens in a new tab), Focus Bear Pty Ltd
- Promoting Self-Regulated Social Media Use on Smartphones With a Mobile Intervention App (Wellspent): Randomized Controlled Trial (opens in a new tab), JMIR mHealth and uHealth, vol. 14 (Lea Mertens and colleagues)
More from Think Autism Melbourne 2026
All 48-
2 minutes 21 seconds, captioned The case that every autistic owned business is a social enterprise Roo Harris At Think Autism Melbourne in 2026, a panellist defined autistic enterprise by its social mission, and Roo Harris called entrepreneurship the ultimate accommodation. Both were questioning a model that leaves autistic people waiting on employers. - 3 minutes 10 seconds, captioned Closed tenders and NDIS changes threaten autistic led social enterprises Rebecca McCash At Think Autism Melbourne in 2026, a panellist said autistic businesses rarely reach government shortlists, and Rebecca McCash warned that moving NDIS money into direct grants and tenders would turn enterprises like FutureTech into charities.
- 3 minutes 12 seconds, captioned Roo Harris reports a quarter of Scale Investors pitches from neurodivergent founders Roo Harris, Kyriakos Gold At Think Autism Melbourne in 2026, the venture investor said the share of pitches to the firm from founders identifying as neurodivergent had doubled in a year, evidence of what Harris called a hidden autistic economy.
- 2 minutes 16 seconds, captioned A Melbourne panellist taught entrepreneurship for 14 years and never used the tools Rebecca McCash At Think Autism Melbourne in 2026, a panellist argued that business plans and model canvases are built for top down thinkers who are comfortable predicting, and that autistic founders need a method that starts from what they control.
- 4 minutes 48 seconds, captioned Autistic founders are succeeding despite the systems, a Melbourne panel said Will Rosewarne, Rebecca McCash Asked at Think Autism Melbourne in 2026 whether autistic entrepreneurs succeed because of systems or in spite of them, Will Rosewarne asked which systems, and Rebecca McCash said the national strategy had not delivered what McCash expected.
- 4 minutes 52 seconds, captioned Autistic founders at Think Autism Melbourne asked whether AI could be their translator Roo Harris, Rebecca McCash and 1 more In 2026 a Melbourne panel weighed whether AI removes the translation autistic founders have had to do for a neurotypical business world. The answers ranged from cautious optimism to a new solo business registered at 66.